Snow
by Wraith Fan
Summary: This is a little New Year's present for those readers who enjoyed my AnK fic 'Crossing the Bridge! But I'm not sure yet if it's gonna be a prequel or more like an alternative version of that fic. For those of you who haven't read 'Crossing the Bridge', there isn't really any prior knowledge required. I hope you'll enjoy this seasonal fic and I wish you all a Happy New Year!
1. The Storm

**Snow** (a 'Crossing the Bridge' spin-off)

* * *

Chapter 1: The Storm

* * *

 **soundtrack and lyrics:** CellDweller – Frozen

* * *

On a frosty winter night during a violent snow storm on the outer borders of Ceres ...

Twisting and turning around on the squeaky, stained, old mattress that was his bed, dark features contorted in what had to be the most terrible agony imaginable, the proud leader of Bison moaned miserably. The name on his trembling lips only distinguishable to those who knew the icy demeanour of the Elite who always seemed to be in the mongrel's thoughts, be they waking or not.

 _Iason._

Yet ever since what happened on that fateful day at Dana Burn nearly a year ago, there had been a quality other than horror added to the many confusing layers that made up Riki's view of his former tormentor. As such the true anguish of the mongrel's nightmare was not the actions inflicted upon him by a hated nemesis at the start of the dream but rather the dramatic downfall of a newfound soulmate at the end of it. As the white-hot flames of his dream swallowed up the image of Iason sharing a final smoke with him, the young man woke up with a startled scream, bolting straight up from the mattress as in an effort to escape the raging fire that had consumed all his hopes at a new chance of love.

Looking upon the other's sweating form and tear-stained face as it glistened in the small beam of moonlight that fell into their make-shift hide-out through a crack in the rotten roof, Riki's second-in-command remained silent. Ever since Riki's sudden return to Ceres about a year ago, he had not only been a different man but clearly seemed to be struggling with some unprocessed loss he was as of yet unwilling to share, even with those who had supported and stuck by him through all the hardships that life had thrown their way. It was as if somewhere deep down something had been continuously eating away at Riki's heart ever since his return. All that they had once shared apparently counted for nothing, and for some reason their formerly notorious leader had not tolerated that a single word be spoken on the subject of Guy. None of the other Bisons had even the slightest clue as to where their old second-in-command and childhood friend had gone and Riki was unwilling to share whatever information he had on the subject, which boded very ill for the likeliness of the other's survival of whatever disaster it was that had left their gang in ruins.

Had there been a fight and had Riki – intentionally or otherwise – killed his old paramount? Or had there been some third party involved that had taken out Guy, a rival gang member or possibly a representative of the authorities? Cause in all that uncertainty and random guess-work all the Bisons agreed on one thing: outside forces had most definitely been involved in what went down at Dana Burn. A rogue mongrel who lived in the desert near the old ruins had seen Riki's unconscious form dragged from the scene by none other than the infamous Black Market dealer Katze only moments before the whole place went up in flames, the final explosion of which had been heard and felt all the way to downtown Midas. If Guy had still been in there at that time, not a single bone in his body could've been left in one piece. He'd have been completely reduced to ashes, his entire body obliterated in seconds by the intensity of the blast.

"The frost won't let ya sleep again, Riki?", it sounded from a dark corner of the shelter, the unexpectedness of the sound momentarily spooking the other out of the remnants of sleep.

"Shit, Sid! I wish you wouldn't startle me like that, man! Yeah, this fuckin' cold's drivin' me up the freakin' walls... What about you, why ya still up?", crawling from under the tattered old towel that served as a blanket, his skin unpleasantly sticky and hot in spite of the aforementioned chill, Riki got up and went to join Sid in the corner after fishing a cigarette from his bikerjacket's pocket and used the other's cigarette butt to light his own.

As if suddenly contemplating his nakedness, Riki then went back to collect some clothes from the side of the mattress and hurriedly threw them on before returning to the corner, where a hole in the wall allowed for the toxic smoke to drift into the crisp night air. Peering out through the make-shift window and witnessing the heaps of snow already forming around the entrance to their shack, Riki said: "Looks like we'll be in for a bit of a dig come morning..."

Inhaling another waft of cheap cigarette smoke, Sid mentioned: "The cold never used to bother you that much. When we were kids I used to think the fire of your spirit could keep us all warm throughout the long winter nights."

"Huh? Nah, it don't bother me that much, I jus' mean this snow thing's a pain with the bikes 'n all... Especially if it gets into the engines", Riki explained matter-of-factly, amazed at how easily he could spin lies while talking to those who had always been closest to him. The thing was he could usually tell if the others were buying his crap or not, but it wasn't that easy with Sid, as the younger mongrel was less inclined to showcase what he was thinking. _He wouldn't have made a bad Furniture, if only he'd had the discipline for it._

"But that's not why you bothered to put on clothes while smoking with an old mate in the middle of the night, is it? When are you finally gonna tell me what the hell is going on with you, man?", Sid asked straight-to-the-point.

"What the fuck's it to you, huh? It's my own business...", Riki started uncertainly, now aware of the fact that Sid hadn't bought _any_ of the crap excuses he'd been sprouting over the last year.

"Yeah, I've been hearing that a lot lately, we all have...", Sid said with a hint of sarcasm in his usually respectful voice.

"The fuck's your problem, man!", Riki went on the defensive. He knew he shouldn't, as it would only serve to alarm his old friend further, causing him to pry more. But he just couldn't help himself, when he was feeling insecure he simply had to lash out.

" _My_ problem? I ain't the one with the goddamn problem, Riki! What the hell happened to you out there? And why the fuck can't any of us know about it?", the other now exclaimed, yet still keeping his voice close enough to a whisper not to wake any of the sleeping mongrels.

Realising that the other's words were spoken out of heart-felt worry rather than rebellion, Riki took a few breaths to calm himself before saying: "Look, man, it don't matter now, it's over... most definitely over. You guys are my family, always have been and always will be, and that's just gonna have to be enough now." Sighing, he added: "Truth be told, I should've never left this place. There's a whole lot worse out there, trust me."

"Then why do I get the feeling that sometimes you're not really here, but rather your thoughts are somewhere else?", Sid asked, picking up his cigarette again and inhaling deeply, as if hoping the warmth of the poisonous smoke could protect his insides from the biting cold.

Unwanted memories of those terrible years of torture and humiliation in Eos and Apathia entered the forefront of Riki's mind before he had a chance to brace himself. Fuck.

"Some things... some things are hard to forget. Some shit just stays with you, y'know, even if you don't want it to. Especially if you don't", Riki finally responded after an ominously long pause. Seeing as how he was out of excuses, perhaps it'd be better to just speak the truth, even if he kept it purposely vague.

After another pause that the dreadlocked mongrel used to blow out another waft of nicotine, he spoke in what was but a mere whisper: "But it wasn't all bad, was it?"

"What the fuck you mean by that?" _Holy fuck, what does he know?! Has he found something out?_ And he'd been so careful not to spill anything on his secret past in Tanagura...

"Geez, man, nothing! I just... you talk in your sleep, I couldn't help but overhear", Sid admitted, hoping the other mongrel wouldn't get all pissed about him supposedly eavesdropping. With everyone crashing that close to each other, it was sort of hard not to notice when the guy right next to you was saying stuff in his sleep...

Sighing at his own rising paranoia, Riki tried to calm himself. _He doesn't know anything. He's just worried._ "It's all right, man. Just don't go spreading bloody rumours around... or I'll have your head, brother or not", he finished in a half-hearted threat.

After that they both fell silent again, the two of them just standing next to each other, blowing out smoke in small circles while the rest of the gang continued to snore undisturbed. Like the silence before the storm.

"So who's Iason?", the peace was interrupted once again with an element of shocking violence.

Nearly choking on his cigarette, Riki started coughing uncontrollably while his second-in-command patted his back in an effort to help him regain his breathing.

"What the... hell! How'd'ya know about that?!", Riki nearly shouted in a sudden fit of panic.

"Chill out, man! I just told you: you talk in your sleep! You kept on calling out... for someone called Iason. What, were you two lovers or something? Did he end up dead at Dana Burn? And what the fuck did Guy have to do with it? Did he kill this Iason? Did they kill each other?", he then blurted out, surprising even himself at his newfound courage. Usually he wasn't one to insist on anything that could make another mongrel hostile. He thought that often avoiding fights altogether was a far better approach than winning them. Things were just less messy that way. But if he was ever going to get some much-needed answers out of his gang leader, it was now or never.

Even though it was clear now that the other was merely speculating, his guesses hit a lot closer to home than Riki would've liked.

"Could you just stop thinking up these fucking fantasies of yours!", Riki finally responded after he'd regained his breath, choosing to simply deny the accusations. Or at least what he had interpreted as an accusation, for really the only one accusing him of anything was his own conscience.

"But who is this Iason? And why is he so important to you?", Sid insisted. He often waited a long time to ask for information, but when he did it was nearly impossible to shake him off.

"It's none of your goddamn business who he is! Now shut your trap before I shut it for you and go back to bed!", Riki hissed venomously, his anger clearly meant that time. Crawling back under the old towel with all his clothes still on, Riki turned his back on his old friend and squeezed his eyes shut hoping that sleep would soon claim him. Perhaps forever this time. Perhaps one of the advantages of that blasted weather they'd been having would be him freezing to death and finally returning to his Blondie's arms through the cold embrace of a winter snow storm.

Yet it was not death that claimed him in sleep, but more unwelcome thoughts of what had happened beyond the Tanaguran wall and memories both good and bad of the people who he had known there. Those moments in time seemingly frozen in his mind, forever imprisoning him in the madness of his own feelings of shame, guilt and regret.

* * *

 **Inside this fantasy, it seems so real to me**

 **Synthetic ecstasy when her legs are open**

 **True life behind the wall**

 **Where men and angels fall**

 **A fading memory**

 **When my mind is frozen**

* * *

Gazing out unto the snow-covered terrace of his higher-up apartment in the fabled Eos Tower, Raoul Am was so lost in thought that he hardly even noticed his two recently-bred Pets who were currently dismantling the snowman they'd built earlier in order to shove the snow into each other's clothes. Not that they were wearing an awful lot of clothes for that matter.

"Worried they'll go hypothermic? Or did you upgrade the speed of their metabolism again?", Yuki's high-pitched voice sounded in that chipper, slightly sarcastic tone she always used when talking about her peers. She sat down and cuddled up in the nest of blankets she had installed in her favourite chair by the window, folding her legs underneath her narrow bottom. No matter how many times the loyal Furniture had removed the offending chair from said spot – upon his Master's repeated instructions – she always managed to escape the boy's watchful eye long enough to replace it in said desired position. Reaching behind the potted plant on the window sill right next to the chair's left arm, she retrieved what appeared to be another one of her hidden stashes of chocolate.

"You'll get fat if you continue to eat that throughout the entirety of every single day. Did you even bother with morning gymnastics or did you only crawl out of bed just now?", the honey-curled scientist spoke in a clearly reprimanding tone while continuing to stare out the window unseeingly, merely pretending his attention was focussed elsewhere than on the blonde girl curling up like a Siamese cat on the seat across from him. She was wearing navy-blue leggings that reached until right above her tiny feet, barely even revealing her ankles. A long-sleeve, white silk turtle-neck with a fluffy, white bathrobe on top completed the outfit. That was the stay-in outfit. In other words she was going to refuse to go to the rehearsal or "get lost" on her way there... again.

Did he not give Damian the order to throw away those leggings about a month ago? Where did she keep getting that very same pair? Or maybe she had a whole collection of identical ones, hidden away somewhere where nobody could ever possibly find them? But when did she access them? Raoul had been watching the monitor ever since the motion sensors had signalled that she had left the bed about an hour ago, announcing the start of her "morning" ritual. Sighing, he realised why he had felt such a sense of familiarity while watching her strike the alarm clock with her pillow. It was the same recording from five months ago, which she had no doubt put on loop on the monitor while she was getting those clothes from whatever hiding spot she'd come up with this time...

"For Jupiter's sake, _Master_ , can you just stop nagging about such nonsense for one whole minute? I only slept about 5 hours in case you're wondering. Maybe I could open the window and throw snow at them, then quickly shut the window again and hide? I wonder if the stupid twits would even realise where it's coming from... ", she said, a malevolent smile already appearing on her pretty face and a vengeful light shining from her big, arctic blue eyes at the thought of putting that plan into action.

"If I am not mistaken it is now a quarter past twelve in the afternoon, which is exactly fourteen hours and fifteen minutes past your official bedtime. Did Damian not put you to bed last night, as I instructed him to do?", the Master of the house continued to interrogate her, knowing full well that the Furniture wasn't at fault. She was, as always.

"Sure he did. He can lock me inside the room, but he can't make me sleep. True, he's cleared all the books that I'd hidden under the bed, inside the nightstand cupboard, behind the curtains and in the wardrobe... However, he'd forgotten to check under the mattress. I don't think he's realised that I've gone back to using that as a hiding place. Apparently he thinks that once a place is discovered I will refrain from using it again in future. It's fairly easy to rotate, as long as I avoid using any sort of pattern someone with a well-organised mind would notice...", she explained calmly, as if after nearly a year of training she was as of yet unaware of how her actions went against Pet protocol. She continued to flaunt the rules, no matter what anyone said or did. If anything, Raoul got the impression that the more he chastised the girl, the more she went against his orders. She was still playing her games with him.

"For the love of Jupiter, why must you make everything this difficult? And stop eating that stuff, it is detrimental to your health! If you can't even get up before breakfast then there is no reason for you to be having a snack now!", he argued while vehemently pointing at the piece of half-melted chocolate still clutched in her doll-like fingers.

"Then come over here and take it from me. It's the only way I'll give it up, you know", she said calmly, continuing to munch the sweet substance undisturbed. Turning her attention back to the window, she changed the subject as if the matter were settled: "Why do you reckon they're pushing snow inside each other's underwear? Do you think it's a subconscious effort to put a stop to their unfounded feelings of lust? Unfortunately it doesn't work, I've tried bathing in ice cubes several times now and if anything it appears to have an avers effect on the long term..."

"Would you just stop straying from the subject at hand!", the green-eyed Blondie finally cried out in hopeless frustration at what was promising to be another argument. An 'argument' typically consisted out of him standing there yelling his head off while she just sat there quiet as a mouse, giving the rest of the household the impression that _he_ was in fact the one at fault because he was allowing his feelings to get the better of his scientific mind.

"You do not wish to converse civilly? Fine, then you may leave. Off you go. Have a nice day", she said in a sweet, feminine voice, even throwing in an endearing smile at the end. She was very good at those, when she wanted to be. Of course he knew she only used those on him when she was mocking him. Although the other Pets' and even the Furniture's heart melted whenever she lit up their world with one of those dazzling smiles, he'd learned all too soon that it was merely a part of her many manipulations. He'd replaced his Furniture all but six times over the last year but she got under their skin every single time to the point where Lord Am's own Furniture no longer did his bidding but his female Pet's instead. She was such a natural at leadership that it appeared to hardly take any effort on her part, whereas he had to spend a lot of time on what he called the maintenance of his household authority.

"For Jupiter's sake, Yuki! This can't go on like this for much longer! The Syndicate is asking questions, and so is Jupiter! Do you have any idea of what would happen if they had even a clue as to how you speak to your superiors?!", jumping up from his chair, the uncharacteristically emotional Elite threw up his arms in a physical display of powerlessness.

"They don't have a clue and they never will, cause you will never tell them. You can leave now, I'm tired of talking", she downright dismissed him, turning her chair towards the window with great effort, despite the fact that the two Pets had already fled inside due to an oncoming blizzard. There was nothing visible to observe out there anymore, nothing other than a white flurry of snow.

Grabbing a hold of her chair's armrests and effortlessly turning it away from the window in order to face him while he crouched down in front of her, Raoul said: "Then tell me what more you want me to do? I can't let you go, they would never allow it and they would surely chase you down and destroy you. But I can't let you run wild like this either! It's all right for as long as you don't leave these walls and the Furniture keep their mouth shut about it. But it's been nearly a year that you've been here and you haven't attended even one soiree! You need to put on a show for the outside world, otherwise rumours will spread unchecked!"

"Then let them talk. I never said I didn't want to be destroyed. Actually, that would probably serve my purposes best of all. I can't live with this pain. I won't live with it. I'll find a way to end this life if others neglect to do it for me. I just want to be sure first", she spoke serenely while looking him straight in the eyes, apparently accepting the reality of her own demise without any objections or further ado.

Shocked beyond words at this latest of gruesome revelations on the current workings of her inner mind, Raoul was at a loss of words. Finally, he decided to ignore the most ominous part of her speech and focus on the seemingly hopeful note at the end of it.

"You just want to be sure of what first?", he nearly whispered, as if afraid she'd jump straight through the window and off the balcony if he addressed her too loudly.

"That he's dead. I never did see his body", she said softly while turning her blue gaze to the window again, the wistful quality in her voice now rendering her a soft vulnerability that the other could hardly ever observe, at least not up close.

"There... there would _be_ no body for you to see. A fire such as that one, such high temperatures... Virtually nothing would have remained of the body", the physician tried to convey this information to her as gently as possible, adjusting the tempo and tone of his speech and even going as far as putting a reassuring hand on her tiny shoulder. To his surprise she didn't push the hand away, as she usually did in reaction to any form of physical contact. Perhaps he would make more headway if he momentarily went along with her train of thought, regardless of how disturbing he found it to be.

"I know, but what of the ring? Adamantium wouldn't melt, not even in those temperatures", she wondered, counting the snowflakes on the other side of the glass in an effort to maintain her outer calm. But inside of that small body was a raging storm far greater than the one going on outside.

"You think that... the absence of the ring in the ruins... could be an indicator that he had walked out before the explosion?", the Elite asked, having always assumed that the hated mongrel hadn't even been wearing a Pet ring anymore at that time.

"Walked out. Was dragged out. Anything's possible, I suppose. Especially since you refuse to look into it, so I have no way of knowing", she now spoke in an accusingly sharp tone, turning her eyes back to him like icy daggers.

"I only refuse to look into it because you shouldn't be living in the past. I think that for the sake of your psychological stability, it'd be better for you to focus on the future instead", he advised her, still in his sympathetic psychologist mode, though still reluctant to look into her eyes when she was angry. Although she usually tried to be civil towards him, he knew that deep down she resented him and blamed him for the way she had been treated over the last year. He could only hope that at least in truth he wasn't at fault for all of it, but in truth that hardly prevented him from feeling guilty.

Suddenly snickering out loud at his last words, she laughed in an almost maniacal way: "My _future_? And what future would that be? A lifetime of you watching me suck off some idiot with the IQ of a jellyfish and pretending you're not enjoying it? If anything, I don't think that would be very beneficial to _your_ psychological stability. For weren't you the one who said that thinking of what you can't have will only make the craving worse?", she said, her voice now dangerously sweet.

"Whatever do you mean by that?", he questioned, rather surprised at how even through her significantly reduced memory she'd managed to hold on to certain bits of detailed information. At times she would even quote his own words to him to prove her point. But then at other times she wouldn't remember the names of the most important trading partners of the interplanetary diplomatic federation or even the names of the artists of the priceless paintings that used to grace the walls of her former household.

"That you're a _goddamn_ hypocrite, that's what I mean!", she abruptly hissed with an intensity that never failed to stun the other into momentary silence.

"Please... do try to refrain yourself from using such language, I don't want any of the others in this household to resort to such foul utterings...", he started, deciding to focus on the disturbing language rather than on the even more disturbing contents of what she had just said.

"Actually cursing is very much like a form of therapy, it makes it a lot easier to bear pain and humiliation because it offers a way out for all of that frustration rather than letting it build up inside your mind", she switched to what seemed like an entirely rational line of thought, sounding much like a speaking encyclopaedia. It was truly amazing how she could alternate between perfectly calm reason and insanely emotional outbursts during the same conversation.

"How am I a hypocrite? Have I not done everything within my power to help you? If I were to needlessly sacrifice my own life in some fool's quest to try and take you away from this place, it would not help you in the slightest because your brain has literally grown around a chip that is permanently connected to Jupiter's mainframe. If ever that chip – for whatever reason – would lose its connection to said mainframe, it would automatically self-destruct...", he began to explain, unsure whether he did so because of the very real possibility that she had actually forgotten that piece of information or because of his own desperate need for a more daily, rational thread of conversation.

"As if I don't know that! Just shut up and listen for one _bloody_ second! I'm not saying that you're a hypocrite because you haven't tried to free me! I'm saying that you're a hypocrite because you're too afraid to act on your feelings! You can deny that you have forbidden feelings for me all that you like, but I _know_ that you have them!"

"I...", at a loss for words for the second time in the space of but ten minutes, Raoul didn't know how much more of this his electronic heart could take. He was totally clueless as to why the girl's much smaller, fragile human heart hadn't burst yet with all of the anxiety it had no doubt suffered during these disputes over the last year. "I fail to see how any of that is relevant... Because whatever my feelings for you, they're clearly not reciprocated."

" _How_ am I supposed to reciprocate them when I can't even _know_ they're there?!", she spat back at him, agilely hopping over the right armrest of the chair in order to escape his physical proximity without having to brush past him. Heart racing, she put some distance between them without making it seem like she was afraid. Because she wasn't: being this livid left no place in her mind for fear, just anger.

"I am not asking you to reciprocate my feelings. I am asking you to put aside all things even slightly related to feelings and just rationally think about your current situation and your continued survival!", momentarily so wrapped up in his own desire to comfort her, he made the mistake of following her rather than allowing the girl her personal space, reaching out with long, strong arms and fingers.

"I did and the most rational decision at this point would be to end my own life", she said, repeating that thought for the sole purpose of tormenting him. Perhaps if she upset him enough, he would recognise a lost cause and just leave her alone. Finally she stopped trying to back away from him because apparently he couldn't take a hint and just kept on trailing after her like a sad puppy. A very large, sad puppy that was currently towering over her like Goliath over David. _Shit, I really need to get me some killer heels!_

"There is _nothing_ rational about ending your own life!", the green-eyed giant implored, kneeling down in front of her, unsure himself whether it was to make up for their difference in height or to show that he was actually begging. "You are in good health, materialistically you have everything you need to live a full and long life, you still have people who care about your wellbeing..."

Tears began to sting her eyes at the unholy display she now saw reflected in the window pane behind them: a magnificent, electronic deity on his knees with gorgeous green eyes full of sorrow in front of a small, blonde girl with an angry pout on her cute, little face. Wiping the offending drops from her face in annoyance, she interrupted his textbook list of positive things to live for: " _Why_ can't you just say that you want me to stay alive because you'd miss me if I were gone? What, you'd rather have me throw myself into the abyss without even knowing that you care?"

"Nothing is going to happen to you, I promise you that. I won't allow it."

Suddenly reminded of a time when she herself had spoken nearly those very same words, her anger boiled over like lava spurting from a volcano and she unexpectedly found herself yelling like a banshee: "Bullshit! You can't protect me from everything and everyone forever! You can't even protect me from yourself! In fact, in many of your so-called efforts to protect me you are actually hurting me!"

* * *

 **I can see a frozen point in time**

 **Where her figure still awaits**

 **Tongue of fire tracing lips' outline**

 **Where frozen breath originates**

* * *

Shocked once again at her unexpected words and more so at the fire of the conviction behind them, Raoul just gazed at her as if he was looking at a star in the night sky for the first time in his life, having lived all of it without ever thinking of looking up. "I... I apologise... for my own lack of ability when it comes to protecting you. I've never pretended to be perfect, for such is of course a scientific impossibility. But in exchange for being under my care society expects certain things from you. Now I don't need to explain what those things are, for I'm sure you know what they are all too well. It may not be my own personal decision, I have no more choice in this than you do, but I see it as part of my responsibility to keep you safe that I also keep you safe from your own actions, or in this case rather your lack thereof." _Perhaps presenting her with the simple, hard facts may knock some sense into her._ Yet he found a part of him – he was as of yet unsure how dominant that part may be – was fascinated by the unusual change in her behaviour rather than put off by it.

Sighing, she walked away from and around him in a large circle in order to retreat back to the safety of her comfy chair by the window. Once she was safely back in the chair with her arms folded protectively across her body, she responded rather sheepishly: "Raoul, you may find this difficult to fathom, but in spite of the reasons behind my recycle I have no interest at all in such things now. And I'm afraid that when it comes to this it is mind over matter with me. To be completely honest, I have... tried... to at times... _interact_ with some of the others in such a manner. But they can tell my heart's not in it and their instincts are such that they know it's not a good idea to push me."

"Wait a minute... so you _have_ tried? When? Why was I not even informed of this?"

"You weren't informed because I asked the others to stay quiet. I don't know why but for some reason it would appear they fear my wrath much more than they do yours. They have good instincts, these more recent breeds of yours, I'll give them that."

"But why? Why would you pretend that it is but prideful stubbornness that is preventing you from doing what is expected?"

"By Jupiter, Raoul, why do you think?! It's embarrassing! Everyone just thinks it's so easy but it's not. At least for me it isn't... Here you are, doing all within your power to support me and I can't even do this one easy thing in exchange..."

"Listen, Yuki, I know that it is not always such an easy thing, and that other than the physical aspects there are many psychological and emotional ones involved... And of course given your history it is perfectly natural for you to feel... apprehensive... about surrendering your body to another. I believe you might greatly benefit from some form of therapy, or perhaps a switch to a more inexperienced partner for the purpose of practice. I could ask Damian to assist you in..."

"I want you", she interrupted him as she briskly turned around and approached him from behind the barriers that both the couch and the coffee table formed between them.

"I... You want _me_ to be your therapist?", the Blondie asked incredulously, jade eyes filled with disbelief for what had to be the umpteenth time in the last hour. She never did make it easy for him with the way her thoughts would seem to jump all over the place now.

"I don't need a therapist. Just someone who truly cares for me and who therefore I can trust. Someone knowledgeable on the arts of seduction yet still a novice to them. In other words _you_ are the perfect candidate for the job", she concluded decisively, clearly not planning on changing her mind on the matter. Still as unyielding as the element of her many nicknames. As if the madness she suggested was perfectly rational.

 _How could someone so distant and harsh still inspire such passion_ , Raoul thought to himself. The charismatic effect of her relentless, aloof nature was a contradictio in terminis for all intents and purposes.

* * *

 **With one motion of her wanting eyes**

 **She strips everything away!**

 **This one moment is intensified**

 **And the colours all fade to grey**

* * *

Navigating his old-school bike through the now snow-covered sand of the borders of the outlands, Riki couldn't help but suppress a shiver as the cutting chill of the icy winds that howled around him snuck its way in through the tightly-shut collar of his leather jacket, carrying small bits of warmth-sucking snow inside his shirt and up against his bare skin.

 _Damnit! Just can't seem to keep the cold stuff out of my clothes. Almost there ..._

When he finally arrived at his destination the tough mongrel felt like his hands had frozen to the steering handles of the bike. Moreover his entire body was shaking with near-hypothermia and chilled to the very marrow of his bones. Gazing out across the ruinous mess of molten metal and crushed stone before him, horrid memories filled his mind to the point where he could barely distinguish between the burning bite of the cold winter winds and the licking of the lethal flames he had nearly been consumed by in that same place that he was standing right now.

 _Maybe coming here wasn't such a good idea._

 _What the fuck am I even hoping to achieve here?_

"Shit!", Riki cursed, kicking against a loose stone at his feet and watching it bounce down the snowy hill until it disappeared out of his line of vision.

 _What was I even expecting?_

 _For Iason to crawl out from under there and tell me everything's gonna be all right?!_

"Fuck, I'm such an idiot!", the mongrel screamed at the top of his lungs, the empty white wasteland around him appearing to absorb the sound and transform it into nothingness.

Picking up more stones and throwing them away in random directions, the young man finally fell down unto the pristinely white ground and hit the icy surface with his fists until they bled right through the leather gloves he was wearing, causing bright-red smudges to appear on what had previously been endless pure white. Anger giving way to despair, the mongrel cried out his heartache to the snowy white skies.

The bright blue that shone through the gaps in between the storm clouds a few minutes later finally put a stop to his raw, near-animalistic screams. It was the same shade of blue as Iason's eyes. The golden rays of sunlight that now came filtering through reminded Riki of the long, golden tresses that had offered him support and comfort in his time of need. "Iason", he whispered, as if praying that at least the other's soul had gone up to heaven and was now looking down at him, like religious people had believed in old times. Only noticing his tears now that they had frozen unto his tan cheeks, Riki frustratedly wiped at his face, not sure anymore what traces of snow had originated from the ground and which were in fact his own frozen tears.

Really, there was no point in continuing to think about things that were in the past now. His most unlikely relationship with the Blondie sure had been one long, crazy, heart-stopping, exciting and scary rollercoaster ride. But it was over now and Riki felt like his life might as well be over with it. For what did he have left to live for, now that the enigmatic, infuriating Iason Mink was gone? Sure, he'd always expected the esteemed Syndicate leader would grow bored and get rid of him at some point. But that their relationship would come to a stop with such finality and no hope whatsoever of any kind of continuation of their liaison, _that_ he had not seen coming. The Elite had always appeared to be so indestructible to him, as unforgiving and immovable as a mountain or rather an ice-berg, with unforeseen sharp extensions threatening beneath the cold, serenely white surface. A force of nature rather than a human being of flesh and blood.

 _And now I've fucking outlived him. Maybe I've even killed him._

For surely if the Blondie had never met Riki, then he would've never gone to Dana Burn and Guy would've never rigged the place with explosives. So Riki might as well have hit the detonator himself.

 _I finally find something truly beautiful and precious in this life and I end up breaking it._

He was supposed to be the one who ended up destroyed, not Iason. And certainly not because of a mere mongrel. A world where the top Blondie from Tanagura ceased to exist and a gutter rat from Ceres survived was a world where nothing made any sense anymore.

Not feeling up to the task of leaving the place of the past and facing the harshness of the present just yet, Riki continued to sit at the top of that white hill and look out across the death-like stillness of the beautiful winter landscape. Seen from the sky, the black colour of his garments and bike made him stand out like a stain on a silk, white sheet. Vaguely glancing up at the falling flakes above as he lay stretched out on the icy-soft snowcarpet, he wondered how long it would take for him to be completely covered by the cold, white substance. How long it would take for the landscape to re-cover after the insult of his presence there. Probably far less long than it took it to recover from the major explosion of the ancient ruins that had once put the first stamp of humanity on the inhospitable habitat of Amoy. Riki recalled the black fumes that could be seen spiralling to the heavens as he and Katze sped away from the burning ruins before the final, destructive blast hit. _Perhaps this world was simply never meant for humans. Perhaps it's our turn to be broken and forgotten._

* * *

 **I am in the only place that I want to be**

 **Though we know that it ends eventually**

 **But it's all right cause right now we're frozen**

 **I want to forget mistakes they've helped me make**

 **It's better to be broken than to break**

* * *

As always, the mornings were confusing, especially after longer periods of sleep, which luckily had been rare. That initial awakening of her awareness that failed to register all the tumultuous changes she had gone through. Lazily cracking open one eye, the first realisation that something wasn't quite right registered. It was taking much too long to wake up and force her body into action. Her body was supposed to come to life the second right after her consciousness stirred, automatic systems switching on even while her brain was still in the process of awakening. But there were no such systems now. Just a vague blank and a random selection of washed-out images of past events. For some reason they always involved fire and a blurred, dark figure that was moving away from her as the fire got hotter.

Crawling to the side of the bed, she all but fell out of it, her nose nearly hitting the luxurious carpet as her still-numb body smacked back into reality. Using the nightstand for support, she finally got to her feet and stretched, muscles still sore from moving about too much in her sleep. She recalled what Raoul had said concerning that: _You have a condition known as periodic limb movement disorder. I will subscribe you some medicine to take as a measure against that._ Of course she'd never taken the damn drugs. She really didn't like the way the drugs numbed her system. _My perception's already vague enough as it is._

Reflexively throwing on an icy-blue, long silk bathrobe she stumbled out of the bedroom and made her way through the marble hallway that led into the main living space while rubbing her temples. One of her morning headaches was once again announcing its arrival as the bright lights came on upon her approach. _Bloody movement sensors, I ought to hack the hell out of those. Sometime when my head doesn't feel like it's about to explode._

"Mistress! My apologies for not attending to you straight away, but I was tending to my daily cleaning tasks and the Master had instructed me not to bother you until you woke of your own accord. Shall I fetch you some breakfast? I've prepared it a couple of hours ago but I can reheat it for you. I hope that's all right?", a polite voice with a well-mannered accent sounded from somewhere on her left, currently outside of her ridiculously limited line of vision.

"Just coffee please... thanks, Damian", she whispered, her voice sounding small and hoarse. _What the fuck's wrong with my voice? Oh, right, last night's screaming contest with Raoul._

"Macchiato with chocolate, cream and extra sugar?"

"Huh? What? Oh... yeah, I guess", this was one of those mornings on which she temporarily forgot how she hated the bitter taste of pure coffee and revelled in the obscenely sweet taste of sugar. Apparently her brain's abnormally high need of glucoses resulted in an immense sugar-craving while in an organic body. To think that a brain could physically influence a body to that extent. She used to think that the humans' supposed preferences when it came to food had been a random fancy rather than anything rationally explicable. Wrong again.

"Breakfast consists out of a fruit salad of kiwi, mango, pomegranate seeds and passion fruit", the boy carefully started explaining, no doubt already noticing the way her little nose curled up at the mention of kiwi and passion fruit, and in the same sentence at that.

"Hmm... I'm not actually that hungry", she said, an embarrassing sound emitting from her stomach right after. "See? I've got an indigestion, better not eat anything, lest it come back out in a far less appetising form for you to clean up." _I'll raid the fridge for the left-overs of last night's chocolate cake when he's not looking._

"My apologies, Mistress, but the Master has ordered me to make sure that you take in some much-needed vitamin C today. It's very good for your health to eat more fruit", the boy urged with a smile. He was fairly new in the household, which could quickly be asserted from both his youthful look and his slightly uncertain gaze.

"It doesn't need to be kiwi or passion fruit, he just made that up to pick on me. Just give me some strawberries... with sugar and whipped cream", she ordered dismissively, sitting down at the counter and remembering to blow cold air across the surface of her freshly-made macchiato before burning her pink, pretty lips again.

"I'm sorry but the Master was very specific in his instructions", Damian repeated, still polite but his voice had noticeably taken on a firmer quality.

"Let me tell you something, kid...", she said in a husky voice and a conspiratory tone as she gently got a hold of his arm, pulling him closer in order to whisper into his ear. "I could have _your Master_ for breakfast. He's very soft-hearted compared to me. So it would be wise to choose to befriend _me_ rather than him", she finished in a threatening hiss, her long nails now sinking into the skin of his arm enough to leave angry, red marks.

Even if the boy had been informed by his Master to expect the unexpected from this charge, he had not expected to hear such explicit threats or to be physically attacked by her, as females were far less prone to be physically violent. What disturbed him most of all in this shocking display, was her utter lack of respect for the Master of the household.

"Ah, he didn't cover this in your job description, did he? He's a sneaky coward like that, thinks people benefit from being lied to... Well, where's food? By Jupiter, must I do everything myself around here?", she babbled on impatiently as she got up from her chair and threw open the fridge in search of strawberries. Finding the needed ingredients in only a split second, she snatched what she needed and shut the fridge with lightening speed.

Blinking, Damian thought he had to be imagining things. For he had never seen any Pet or Furniture move that quickly. It had happened so fast that he was now quite unsure as to what he had just witnessed.

"Yeah, I can be pretty fast when I want to. Anger and annoyance are powerful motivators with me", she said, grabbing the bowl with fruit salad and dumping its contents into the trash before filling it up with strawberries and spraying those with insane amounts of whipped cream.

Finally regaining his bearings after his initial surprise had worn off, Damian decided that the best way to deal with this unusual, unruly Pet was not to tolerate such behaviour from the first. Taking the bowl and spraying can away from her and placing his own body in between her and the desired treat, he spoke in a louder, lower voice: "Now listen carefully for I will only say this once. In the absence of Master Am, you shall obey every order I give you without question or argument. I am a trained professional put in charge of your welfare, therefore I know what is best for you."

Staring at him with large, blue eyes for several long seconds, she then burst out laughing. Holding unto the counter for dear life with small hands hooked like claws, she continued to howl as if possessed by some unseen demonic god of laughter. There was something about that laughter that didn't sound quite right. Pets didn't laugh like that, there was something eerie and sinister about it. Desperately trying to hide his oncoming discomfort at the Pet's supposedly harmless mirth, the Furniture put the bowl of strawberries into the fridge and set to work on recreating the previous fruit salad. As he turned around to address the creepy Pet again, Damian's jaw dropped when she was no longer there and as he could see from the open fridge, neither was the bowl of strawberries.

Still giggling after having made her escape with the strawberries and cream, Yuki locked herself up in the bathroom by hacking the display. She knew she had time, cause it would take any Furniture at least a couple of hours to fix it. Sinking into the hot, sweet-smelling water, she sighed. Some things about this new life of hers were actually not that bad at all. As the heat coaxed her still-tired muscles back to life and she dipped strawberries in cream, she checked the logs of down-town Tanagura on the bathroom mirror display.

All of a sudden she thought she saw a familiar flash of red pass by on one of the security feeds of the Eos Tower main entry hall. Rewinding and zooming in on the figure's face she felt slightly unsure as only one side of it was visible, so she scanned him for Furniture tags. As expected, the Furniture record that appeared on screen was the one she had been hoping to see. _Finally he came back here!_

Virtually catapulting herself from the tub, not caring that she splashed water all over the marble tiles, she rushed to her room to find something slightly more presentable to wear than a flimsy bathrobe. A quick glance at her wardrobe showed that its contents consisted for one half out of comfortable clothes that were hardly appropriate to go outside in and for the other half out of Pet outfits that left her as good as naked. The only useful thing in the whole closet was a pair of golden, ridiculously high heels that she had worn only once in an effort to make up for the current height difference with the Lord of the household, only to discover that she was still considerably shorter even while sporting the highest heels for sale. Snatching the shoes in question and a pair of loose, white sweatpants, she then made her way over to _his_ wardrobe, praying that there was something in there that wasn't either green or purple...

Stepping out the front door of the Am household after having taken only two minutes to hack open said door (and another five minutes for the sleeping draught she'd put in Damian's tea to take effect), Yuki took a deep breath of 'outside' air. Ever since her sentence had been pronounced by Jupiter and Lord Am had stepped up to take her under his wing, she hadn't even been allowed outside. Although she hadn't consciously thought about it before, she realised now that the prospect of being outside of the protective walls of a household that was about as familiar to her as her own had been, was in fact rather daunting. She wasn't even officially authorised to be out here by herself without Lord Am's permission. If any of the countless security cameras out here were to register her, both she and her protector would be in serious trouble for breaking with protocol. _Fuck protocol._

* * *

 **I can see a frozen point in time that is easy to retrace**

 **Light and darkness are both intertwined, the elements are in their place**

 **With one motion of her wanting mind the real world begins to fade**

 **And all the hateful things I have become temporarily go away**

* * *

Just standing there, the Black Market leader realised that in the year that he hadn't visited this building he had forgotten about its sheer grandeur. Staring up at the enormous marble, Romanesque pillars and impressive water features of Eos Tower's marvellous entry hall, he allowed himself a couple of minutes to adjust and bask in all that splendour once more. Only to have the impressive sight spoiled by that nagging voice at the back of his head telling him that the most magnificent of creatures he had ever laid eyes on no longer resided here... No, he couldn't allow that sense of despair to grab a hold of him, not now and definitely not here. _I won't defile the sanctity of this place or bring shame to my house by showing such emotional weakness!_

"Katze of House Mink?", an excellently-polished, velvet-deep voice sounded close-by, startling the ex-Furniture out of his trip down memory lane.

"Yes, _formerly_ of House Mink, as I'm sure you're aware of. I actually go by Katze Blackmarket now, it's a real pleasure to make your acquaintance once again, Lord Zavi", he responded adequately with practised ease as he accepted the outstretched, gloved hand in his own as reverently and briefly as possible. He hadn't forgotten how to play the Tanaguran game, even if as a Midasian citizen he was no longer legally required to play by its rules.

"Ah yes, I remember now, indeed we _have_ met briefly back when you were the former Head of the Syndicate's house Furniture. My sincere apologies, Mr _Blackmarket_ , I am not used to calculating in the human aging process when registering faces", the recently-elected Head of the Syndicate responded politely with a slight smile that even looked nearly congenial. For the life of him Katze couldn't tell whether the Elite had just made that whole thing about registering aged faces up or not. Such a remark probably gave other men the idea that they were dealing with someone who was as humanly imperfect as themselves and could actually make mistakes, however minor.

But Katze, having been bred and raised in a Tanaguran environment, was not one of those gullible fools who made the fatal error of underestimating the manipulative tendencies of the Elite. "I would like to express my sincerest thanks once again for meeting me here on such short notice, Your Excellency", the sly dealer responded smoothly, following the respectful appellation with a short, deep bow, but careful to never make direct eye contact. You never knew what could set a Blondie off and although he was familiar with this one on a surface level, he knew better than to test the waters this soon after being reintroduced. If he wanted to come out of this shark tank in one piece, he would have to proceed _very_ carefully. He wasn't about to squander Iason's legacy just because he had unlearnt how to crouch down and keep his mouth shut.

"It is really no trouble at all, _Katze_... May I call you _Katze_? Mr Blackmarket just sounds a bit... formal", the new leader of the Elite and representative of Jupiter continued in a deceptively amiable manner while leading the other down the hallway to his private elevator without his gloved hand quite touching the other's shoulder. Yet Katze's honed ears picked up on the slightly derogatory tone underlying those supposedly friendly words.

This Elite believed that the very existence of the likes of him was a down-right insult to everything Tanagura stood for. An ex-Furniture rising to power and wealth in the Midasian underground in a matter of years _with_ the support of one of the most powerful houses in the history of Amoy was bad enough, but for him to continue his rise _without_ said support and with his former house shamed right into the ground? It wouldn't surprise Katze one bit that the long line of assassins sent to kill him over the last year had been sent under the orders of this very Elite, if not in response to his Midas-unfriendly policies.

But at this point, what choice did the Black Market boss have? The recent changes to the trading policy of Tanagura were already badly effecting the business as it was, with more involvement of the authorities virtually paralysing the non-legal branch of it. No matter how many computer systems Katze miraculously managed to outmanoeuvre, the core of the business essentially consisted out of people. And people in both Tanagura and Midas alike were terrified to be apprehended and punished for their crimes under the much harsher, new regime that Lord Zavi had installed since his election by Jupiter.

His instincts screaming at him that something was amiss here – for it was highly unusual for an Elite to ask even a lower-class Elite to accompany them in a private elevator, let alone a former Furniture and Midas citizen – Katze stopped in his tracks and said in an apologetic voice. "Might there be a possibility for us to make use of one of the public elevators, My Lordship? The wondrous sights of Eos Tower have been denied to me for so long, that I feel most anxiously nostalgic to reacquaint myself with them as much as possible during my brief visit here."

Waiting just that one second too long before turning around towards his guest, the white-blonde Elite spoke in a silken voice, ever so slightly laced with steel: "Why of course that is a possibility, _Katze_. I apologise for not realising sooner how much of a torment it is to be forever denied access to the greatness of the infamous views of Eos Tower."

"Well, sometimes you don't know what you have until it's gone", Katze responded in an exaggeratedly friendly tone that was practically dripping with honey. "You can have all your heart's desires one minute, only to have them snatched from you without warning the next. Such is the way of the world, you just never know when the tables could be turned on you. Or re-turned for that matter."

"It sounds like it is quite the feat to be running a business in Midas these days. Pray tell, how many competitors does your business have at the moment, _Katze_?"

 _I swear if he says my name in that mocking tone one more time, I'm gonna fucking lose it!_

Smiling while risking an indirect glance at his host's eyes – a light shade of green, pale enough to register as silver from a greater distance – Katze stopped once again as soon as they head the safety of the crowded public elevator shafts. "None", he answered softly, knowing all too well that he could be whispering during a concert and the other's artificial hearing would register his words perfectly.

"I beg your pardon?"

 _I knew it! This fucker's tendency to fake human weaknesses is just so predictable!_

"The Black Market _has_ no competitors, never had and never will have. You see, I make it my life's mission to take out any potential other parties before they get the chance to _become_ my competitors. In fact I find that running such an operation is very much like a Pet show or a game of chess: it's all about anticipation."

* * *

 **When my mind's frozen**

 **Take me anywhere you want to go**

 **We're far from anything that feels like home**

 **Let's go**

* * *

Running into someone in her haste to get into an elevator heading down, Yuki automatically apologised, only to look up and see the scar that covered half of the man's face up close, her high heels allowing her just enough extra height to reach up to the other's chin.

"Honestly, young Pets nowadays appear to have a complete and utter lack of manners. Running around without even looking while they're going and staring at the disfigurements of complete strangers. Were the Pets under your care back in the day this rude as well, _Katze_?"

Recognising that smooth yet treacherous voice from the countless recordings she had secretly watched, it took all of her willpower to stop herself from cursing out loud in that moment. _Jupiter Almighty,_ _it's him! It's Orphe fucking Zavi! What the hell's Katze doing here, with him of all Elite?_

Daring a short upwards glance as the elevator approached its final destination – only now realising that she'd jumped into one of the upwards elevators by mistake – she almost cursed out loud again upon inspecting the Blondie's appearance. _Shit, he's tall! He's like a fucking monster!_

Then again it made sense considering that Raoul already looked like a giant in comparison to her, and she knew that he was in fact one of the shorter ones among the Blondies. Observing the other's clothes and bearing, she had to conclude that apparently he'd hired a better stylist since his rise to power, for he was considerably better-dressed now than he had been before. But he still wore that perfume that she'd always hated, and to her human nostrils it now smelled sweet enough to nearly make her vomit.

Unconsciously moving to stand further away from Zavi and closer towards Katze, she contemplated how she was supposed to get the dealer's attention with that bastard standing right there. Perhaps she could try typing something on her phone? But then she realised that she had left the phone in Raoul's apartment, for phones were way too easy to trace and she didn't want to take the time to disable the phone's gps before heading out. What about Katze's phone? Would he say something if she were to take it from his pocket? She knew there was no way she could take it without him noticing, he was ex-Furniture after all.

Taking another sniff of the dealer's aftershave – the mild smell of cloves and the freshness of citrus comforting her even if it didn't really smell familiar – she stepped a bit closer to him and slipped her tiny, white hand inside his coat pocket.

It was only because of his ingrained Furniture self-control that Katze could remain silent when the female Pet – who had noticeably already stepped much closer to him than was appropriate – unexpectedly put her hand in his coat pocket.

 _Is she trying to rob me?_ That was the first thought that went through his mind, but clearly there was no reason why an Eosian Pet would try to take something from a complete stranger. She had no way of even knowing what was in his coat pocket.

Looking down at the girl, Katze saw right away that she was purposely avoiding his gaze. He tried to recall whether he had ever seen this girl anywhere – for there was something eerily familiar about her somehow – but had to conclude that he indeed had never seen her before. She had a petite, fragile built with barely any curves and she was extremely pale, a feature which was further accentuated by the impressive golden curtain of hair that covered most of her back, chest and face. Her hair was without a doubt her most flattering feature, its silky quality and gorgeous golden shimmer practically begging to be touched, as if calling out to the viewer like a siren's song to a lost sailor. But the tip of her nose stuck out from underneath it because of how it pointed upwards just a bit more than was common in Pets. Beautifully symmetrical and flawless as their faces were, in essence they all lacked character and were barely even distinguishable from one another. Yet that nose had a unique quality to it, something that literally stuck out. Also the utter lack of either boobs or ass in a Pet whose height suggested that she had reached adulthood, was highly peculiar. Then again some Elite had certain unusual preferences that they specified when filing for a special breed to be manufactured, so it wasn't entirely unseen to get Pets that defied the norm.

Upon closer inspection, Katze couldn't help but wonder what the Furniture who dressed this unusual Pet had been thinking when he selected that outfit. The strange trousers – were they supposed to be harem pants perhaps? – covered each and every inch of skin and their looseness even hid away most of the shape of her legs. But what Katze registered as most out of the ordinary in his brief resume of the Pet's outfit, was the white, silk upper garment she was wearing. Was it a dress or possibly a long-flowing tunic of some kind? If he was being perfectly honest it looked almost like she was wearing her Master's dress shirt. Either way it looked much too wide on the girl, a fact that was rather ingeniously camouflaged by the way a golden belt was secured around her high waist and the sleeves had been rolled up nearly all the way to her slim shoulders. A Pet dress that completely hid away the shape of the chest and that had long sleeves? Had Tanaguran Pet fashion truly changed so dramatically in the brief period of time since Katze had last been in Eos? To further add to the strangeness of the girl's physical appearance, she wasn't wearing any jewellery or make-up. Not that she needed any for that matter, for her face had a bright quality all on its own and her very presence contained a form of elegance that Katze had seldom seen in anyone.

As the elevator reached its final stop before heading the penthouse, the tiny hand slipped out of the ex-Furniture's pocket unnoticed by the Elite in their midst and the girl stepped out of the elevator without a word or even a backwards glance. Could it be that she was intimidated to be in the presence of the Head of the Syndicate and that she had merely looked for protection in the presence of a Furniture? But how had she even realised that Katze _was_ a Furniture? He wasn't wearing a Furniture uniform and if anything he was much too old to be mistaken for one nowadays.

"... do you think about that, _Katze_?", the manipulative Elite next to him practically purred while he looked in his direction.

"Erh... Yes, of course, you are completely right about that, Your Excellency", Katze replied stiffly, not having even the slightest idea what the other had been talking about for the last five minutes. _I must be getting soft in my old age, being thus distracted by some Pet girl._

Just as they had left the elevator and were about to enter the penthouse that had formerly housed Katze's Master, a well-known ringtone alerted Katze that he had a new message on his phone. "If you would excuse me for just a moment, Your Grace, I have to take this. It's probably concerning the market so it could be important", Katze said, trying to sound as reverently respectful as possible because he knew some Elite imagined that the whole world stopped spinning when someone was at their beck and call. Judging by the other's acidic gaze and the slight down-turn of those pale lips, Lord Zavi was most decidedly one of those. _Damnit, why must they always call at a time like this!_

Reading what was on the device's screen, Katze blinked in confusion when he recognised the number of his own phone. As he didn't have the habit of sending postponed messages to himself, he was completely in the dark as to how that message even got there. Could his private message box possibly have been tampered with? Who would even have the skill-set and software requirements necessary to by-pass his carefully-constructed network of ever changing firewalls?

Finally unable to contain his curiosity much longer in spite of the possible risks to the security of his phone records' privacy, Katze opened the message and frowned in confusion at its contents.

'Don't go in there, he's probably planning on poisoning you or forcing you to sign over your assets anyways. If anything the household must look dreadfully awful now that he's redone the décor. We have some very important issues we need to discuss straight away. So find some excuse to leave and come meet me at the coffee shop down the street, the one with the pink neon milkshake above the doorway.'

There was no name signed below the message, but it didn't take a genius to figure out that the blonde girl in the elevator had typed in this message while the phone was still inside his pocket. Why she would do that and what on Amoy she was talking about in that message however, remained a complete mystery even to the resourceful workings of Katze's mind.

Walking back up towards the front door of the penthouse, Katze announced in a stern voice with an underlying tone of haste: "I am so sorry about this, but I have to leave right away. A completely unforeseen catastrophe has occurred in the market and this really isn't the kind of business to leave up to underlings at a time of crisis. So if you'll excuse me, unfortunately we'll have to reschedule this appointment to some later time." As he was speaking, Katze had already been backing away towards the elevator and practically ran off to quickly push the downwards button before Zavi got a chance to say anything further (or before his security guards got a chance to grab a hold of the dealer after he had committed the outrageous crime of offending the Leader of the Syndicate).

Not even sure why he was hurrying across the street to the coffee shop she had mentioned in her message, Katze briefly wondered if that madness called love at first sight was currently moving him to act in this atypical manner. There was just something about that girl that he couldn't shake. Perhaps this was another example of how curiosity could kill the cat. Would he never learn not to stick his nose where it didn't belong?

Speaking of shakes and noses, there she was! Seated on one of the more comfortable looking cushioned chairs with her legs tucked underneath her, sipping from a huge chocolate milkshake with gusto. Just as Katze started to think that the aura he had registered around her earlier had merely been his imagination, the sun shone through the shop window and illuminated her from behind in a way that seemed to magically turn her hair into a living sea of shimmering gold. She looked like an angel surrounded by a halo of light, making all others in her proximity appear like mere false, cheap copies next to her glorious beauty. The strange thing was that judging by her individual parts she wasn't beautiful at all, at least not in the traditional sense of the word. Yet all those things put together and combined with the strong presence she had about her, gave her an air of pure divinity.

As he sat down on the chair opposite her, she didn't even notice his presence. Katze was used to Pets not noticing him, but for some reason he couldn't quite believe that she hadn't realised that he was there and was in fact purposely ignoring him. Even so, why did that bother him to such an extent?

After a while of him patiently waiting without speaking a word, she looked up to impatiently glance out of the window when their eyes suddenly met. Yelling at there being some guy suddenly appearing in front of her out of seemingly nowhere, she threw the remainder of her milkshake all over his best dress shirt.

"Katze! Oh, _fuck_! You just scared the _shit_ out of me! What were you thinking sneaking up on me like that?!", the girl called out in a high sing-song voice that clashed rather violently with the vocabulary she used.

Not believing the foul language that came out of the beautiful, Tanaguran Pet's mouth any more than he believed that she had just attacked him with a milkshake, Katze didn't even know how to react to the accusations she was hurling his way. It wasn't as if he had purposely tried to "sneak up" on her, he merely moved quietly. What had she expected, for him to come marching in loud enough for her to hear like some Ceresian gang? But more importantly: how did she know his name?

"I... had no intention of catching you unawares. The message you typed on my phone let me understand that you would be expecting me here, for whatever reason", he finally said in as calm and unaffected a voice as he could muster with his face and half his shirt dripping in chocolate milkshake. Taking a napkin, he attempted to restore at least some of his dignity by cleaning up the mess.

" _Holy crap_ , it's really you!", she whispered excitedly, for some reason covering her mouth with both her hands repeatedly and wriggling around on her chair while continuously looking from right to left. Katze had seen Pets physically display eagerness in such uncontrolled movements before, but never quite to this extent and never because of _his_ presence.

"Katze...", she whispered in awe, staring at him in disbelief as if he were the first human being she had ever laid eyes on. "Where the _hell_ have you been all this time!", she then exclaimed before throwing herself at him right across the table, knocking over his chair and landing on top of his still-chocolate-covered chest. "Katze! I was so worried!" As tears were rolling down her pale cheeks, Katze felt overcome not by embarrassment at how she was publicly shaming him by acting in this unbehaved way but by guilt at having apparently caused her such anguish.

"It's... all right. I mean, it took me a minute to give them an excuse and then to make my way out of the tower. I didn't realise there was such haste required..." _Why am I explaining myself to her? I don't even know her!_

"I don't mean just now, you _idiot_! I mean why did you wait nearly a whole _damn_ year to come to Eos!"

"How about we stand up and sit back down before continuing this conversation?"

"What?", she asked distractedly, then realising he was still lying flat on his back with her on top of him and people staring, she quickly got to her feet. "Oh... right."

"First of all what do you mean by a whole year? Or... wait, you know about... about Dana Burn?"

Reaching out across the table so fast that Katze barely even registered the movement, she grabbed both his hands in hers – the softness of the skin on her palms suggested she used a very expensive hand cream – and asked with great urgency: "What happened at Dana Burn?!" Bright, blue eyes stared into his amber ones as if expecting some or other grand revelation. There was something downright mesmerizing about that piercing blue.

"Oh... I was under the impression that you knew. Because I haven't been to Eos since the explosion that happened there, which indeed took place nearly a year ago...", Katze started rather meekly, wondering if he was simply reading too much into a random selection of coincidences here. Could he be in love with this Pet? Was that the reason why she appealed to him so in spite of him not even knowing a single thing about her?

"Don't keep me waiting on an answer, _damnit_! Is he alive?! Tell me!"

"Is... _who_ alive?"

"Riki! Riki of course, who else would I be asking about?! Answer me!"

"I... D...do... do you...", Katze stammered for what had to be the first time in his adult life. The only way a Pet would even know about Riki and Dana Burn was for said Pet to have had contact with the only other Tanaguran who knew about that. "Were you in contact with Iason Mink? Do you know what's happened to him?! Tell me!"

"It doesn't matter, tell me what happened to Riki!"

"Riki... Riki's alive and fully healed. I got him out, as per Iason's instructions."

"Oh! Oh, Jupiter be praised! Oh.. Oh no! I can't kill myself now! Not with Riki alive!"

"Why... Why would you want to kill yourself?", Katze asked in alarm, knowing how very rare it was for a Pet to have such self-destructive thoughts, especially a young Pet still living in luxury in Eos.

" _Why_?! Just _look_ at me! Look at this weak, useless body! Not to mention the memory loss! You... You don't even _recognise_ me, do you?!", she screeched, the uncomfortably shrill, ear-piercing sound causing several bystanders to flee the premises and others to look upon the pair in hostile disapproval.

 _Dear Jupiter in cyberspace, this can't be real!_ "M... Master Iason?!"

* * *

 **Here I'm anyone I want to be**

 **It's here and now, and now it's only you and me**

 **It's never enough, that's true**

 **I want to stay here, yeah, and I do too**

 **Breaking it down, taking it down**

 **With smell, touch and taste, sight and sound**

* * *

Waking up when something warm, wet and living made repeated contact with his face, Riki cried out in fright and desperately attempted to push his assailant off his chest. Getting a better hold of his invisible attacker – for it was too dark to see anything – Riki was surprised to find the other's body significantly smaller than his own and covered in fur. _What the...?_

The howling he heard close-by combined with the now distinguishable smell of dog made it clear to Riki that his attacker wasn't actually human. Or machine for that matter. Kicking the dog off him with new strength and courage, Riki got up and unsheathed the knife he always carried on his belt. But now that he was up and on his feet, his canine assailant apparently thought that he was no match for him after all and ran off into the night, howling to the rest of his pack. Sure, living in a pack sure had its advantages, however Riki had never been part of a pack by any choice of his. For some reason people just wanted to follow him, though in essence he had always been more of a lone wolf. Being around too many people just caused more problems than it solved, or so was his opinion on the matter. But there came a point in every lone wolf's life where he missed the company of a mate. Riki had often heard that when a lone wolf lost its mate, it died soon after, unable to deal with the loneliness.

 _Perhaps that's what I ought to do too, just lay down and give up. Just let the coyotes devour my flesh and the vultures pick my bones clean. It's definitely beginning to look like a much easier option than always having to fight just to be allowed to continue this empty existence for another day._

Walking back up the hill towards his bike, he wasn't sure if he was walking up there to go home – wherever that was nowadays – or to blow up the bike's engine to make all this misery end at last. Hell, the rest of the gang would probably assumed that it'd been an accident, they needn't even know about how their respected leader had finally given up like a cowardly, beaten dog.

Just as he was contemplating that thought, his right foot crushed something underneath the snow. As the object had been hard enough to considerably bruise his foot upon stepping on it, Riki crouched down and brushed off several layers of snow both fresh and iced-over until he could finally pick up the mysterious object from the desert sand. Could bits and pieces of the old ruins really have flown this far away from the site during the explosion? That seemed highly unlikely, especially as Riki had come back to look at the ruins on several occasions and had seen the range of where the debris had fallen. His curiosity picked, Riki started up his bike and looked at the object in the machine's headlight.

At first glance it appeared to be some kind of ring and judging by the amount of dirt sticking to it, it had been buried there for quite a while. Pulling an old rag he usually used to clean his bike from his pocket, Riki began to polish the ring, curious to find out whether it was made out of a metal that had any value in the market. The metal underneath the layer of grime appeared to be light in colour and exceptionally shiny. Silver? No, too light. White gold possibly? That'd be some serious booty for a random walk in the desert! As he cleaned off more dirt, he saw that the ring even had some kind of precious stone embedded in it. _Holy smokes, I may have just hit the jackpot!_ Now polishing faster as the promise of reward became more tangible, Riki's eyes nearly fell out of their sockets and his mouth fell open. Dropping the object into the snow out of sheer shock, a shimmering circle of sky blue lit up the snow around him when the bike headlight shone upon the precious stone. It was a sapphire. And not just any sapphire, but one of the biggest sapphires Riki had ever laid eyes on, for he now realised that he knew this ring better than he knew the back of his own hand.

 _Bloody angels in fucking heaven! It's Iason's ring! It's Iason's freakin' Master ring!_

Picking up the ring carefully, as if it were some holy relic deserving of respect, Riki studied it more intensely. A closer inspection only confirmed it, this was beyond all doubt Iason Mink's ring. But how did it get here? Riki remembered that as he and Iason were sharing that final smoke, Iason had most definitely been wearing this ring. So how did it end up such a distance from the explosion, far away from any of the other debris? Had someone taken it from Iason's body or from somewhere nearby, and then lost it along the way?

 _No fucking way anybody would find a ring like this and then be careless enough to lose it!_

Could someone have dragged Iason's body from the ruins and somehow have caused the ring to slip from his finger? It seemed unlikely, but it was plausible that once flesh was burned from one's hand, rings that were a snug fit before would become loose... Then Riki realised that also that scenario was virtually an impossibility.

 _Iason's body weighs nearly a fucking ton. There's just no way anybody could've dragged him out here!_

Indeed such a feat seemed impossible, unless of course...

 _Another Elite's pulled him out!_

"Holy shit...", Riki cursed under his breath as he turned the ring round and round in his hand, still not quite believing it had been there all that time, seemingly waiting to be found. "Why the fuck would they even bother to get his body out of there? Tanagurans don't bury their dead... For spare parts maybe? Or...", hot tears now rolling down his face as he dared to think it, "Or maybe he could still be fixed?"

When talking about humans such a thought was of course absurd. But even after living with a Blondie for several years, Riki realised that he was still mostly in the dark when it came to the Blondies' physical limitations. Was it possible for a Blondie to survive such an explosion? But if Iason had survived, then how come he was never mentioned anymore on television? If Riki recalled correctly, Jupiter had even elected a new representative a couple of months ago.

While still deep in thought, the young man pulled out a leather string from underneath his shirt and briefly looked at the Pet ring attached to it. It was _his_ ring, the one he'd kept around his neck ever since Dana Burn, hidden underneath his clothes, close to his heart. He then added the Master ring to the necklace with a deep sense of satisfaction and hope: Pet and Master finally reunited, at least around his neck. Perhaps him finding his soulmate's ring in this unlikely manner wasn't a mere coincidence. Perhaps it had been faith. _Perhaps we were meant to be together, even if all the forces around us were trying to prevent it._

Carefully re-tucking the necklace into his shirt and speeding off on his bike, Riki continued to ponder the possibility. Maybe it wasn't as absurd as he thought it was. If anything the presence of the ring proved that some Elite or another Tanaguran machine with the necessary power, had removed Iason's body from the premises. If he wanted to find out just how credible that theory was, there was only one person he could turn to for more information.

 _Katze._

 **How long will I be here without you near?**

 **Because I am so cold**

" **Break them first or I'll get broken" is not what I was told**

 **Now I'm so cold, I'm so cold**

 **So cold**

* * *

 **Inside this fantasy, it seems so real to me**

 **Synthetic ecstasy when her legs are open**

 **True life behind the wall**

 **Where men and angels fall**

 **A fading memory**

 **When my mind is frozen**

* * *

 **Frozen.**

 **Frozen. I am so cold.**

 **Frozen.**

* * *

 **I am so cold.**

 **Let's go.**

 **I am so cold.**

 **Let's go.**

 **I am so cold.**

 **...**

* * *

To Be Continued ...


	2. The Thaw

Chapter 2: The Thaw

 **soundtrack & lyrics:** Pendulum – Violet Hill

 _Author's notes:_

OK, so I owe everyone yet another apology for my tardiness! Fortunately the oncoming cold and recent rainy days have served as a source of inspiration to finally continue this winter-themed fic that I started last year! ;-) So I hope you'll all enjoy this next chapter, I'm not entirely sure yet where I'm going with this – if it's still gonna be a prequel to 'Crossing the Bridge' or more like an entirely alternative version – but regardless this is what came out of my fingers as I typed away at this keyboard. Thanks for reading and please don't forget to review! :-)

* * *

 **It was a long and dark December**

 **From the rooftops I remember**

 **There was snow**

 **White snow**

* * *

As the mongrel sped his tired, old bike down the main street of the slum formerly known as Area 9, snow was still continuing to fall from the sky, albeit it in a slower, less violent manner than during the storm. Ignoring how the white, icy substance stuck to his black leather jacket and hair, Riki felt somewhat uneasy about going back to the Black Market headquarters without knowing what he'd find there. He hadn't been outside of Ceres for nearly a year now – except to pickpocket unsuspecting tourists – not wanting to have anything further to do with Katze. The memories were simply too painful and he sure as hell didn't need Katze to confirm how his Master's undoing had been Riki's fault, as he was sure the dealer couldn't but blame him for all that had gone down at Dana Burn.

But now that there was this tiny flicker of hope, this small but significant chance that Iason could still be alive... Well, what choice did Riki have? Nobody else who was within the communication range of a mongrel from the slums could provide him the information he needed. Although he wasn't too sure to what extent Katze still had informers inside Tanagura, for surely the unofficial support of Lord Mink had played a big part in the underground dealer's ability to keep tabs on what went on under those flashing daylights. Did Katze even still have access to the necessary funds to keep up the market's illegal stream of supplies? And if not, what could have happened to him?

Stopping his bike at the juncture ahead, Riki wondered if it would be worth the risk to cut through Hot Crack in order to get to Janus – where the Black Market had its main offices – more quickly. Surely nobody would be out and about in this kind of weather? Ever since Bison had lost control of the free-for-all street, several other trigger-happy gangs had warred for control in that area, so it was hard to even keep track of who had established a foothold there. Hence most Ceresians simply avoided the street altogether, lest they end up caught in a cross-fire or on the wrong side of a recently re-negotiated, unofficial border. In addition Riki was no ordinary trespasser, for he was still famous enough to be recognised on sight as the returned leader of the formerly feared Bison gang. If he were to be seen riding down that street, it would definitely be taken as a declaration of war to whatever gang currently held sway over Hot Crack.

Opting against it – it would be seriously deranged if he were to end up shot to pieces now, without ever even finding out if Iason was still alive – Riki turned his bike around and raced down another street towards the longer route to the Janus border with Midas. Only a couple of streets further though the young man already came to regret his decision, for a considerable amount of snow had found its way inside his bike's engine and was now clogging it up, causing the bike to shut down in the middle of a trash-littered alley near the border with Janus. His curses nearly completely muted by the howling wind and the snow heaped up on the many piles of garbage lining the road on both sides, Riki jumped off the bike and crouched down behind it to inspect the engine. Fortunately he never left the Bison shelter without his tool-kit, but as he took the engine apart he could tell straight away that the problem was far worse than he had anticipated. Upon coming into contact with the hot engine, the snow had melted and mixed with the desert sand that had already been heaped un in there, forming an icy, sticky mass. "Shit, I can't fix this without spare parts..."

Getting back up and glancing around, Riki decided to hide his bike somewhere nearby and to simply walk to Janus. The Black Market headquarters weren't too far away and this wasn't hostile territory to Bison, however it would of course mean that Riki had to plough through the snow that was currently knee-high while the sun was about to set and the temperature would thus go down considerably. Placing his bike against the wall of a derelict, former supermarket and covering it up with trash from a nearby dumpster, Riki hoped it would continue to snow long enough for the bike to be properly covered. Zipping up his worn, leather jacket until right underneath his chin and turning up the collar in an attempt to somewhat protect his head, Riki put his gloved hands inside his pockets and started walking in the direction of Janus. He wasn't even sure how long it would take him to get there on foot in normal circumstances, as he had always gone that distance by hoverbike, and Jupiter knew how long it would take him in this shitty weather.

 _I've picked one hell of a night to pay Katze a visit, that's for sure. Hope it's worth my while._

* * *

 **Clearly I remember**

 **From the rooftops they were watching**

 **While we froze**

 **Down below**

* * *

 _Dear Jupiter in cyberspace, this can't be real!_ "M... Master Iason?!", Katze asked, his voice cracking up with the tidal wave of emotions that was currently being unleashed inside of him.

"Sssh! I'm not supposed to give away my former identity! But when I saw you on the lobby monitor... well, I couldn't watch the only person who could tell me what had happened to Riki just walk away!", the girl hushed the usually-composed ex-Furniture before he shouted out her former name for all by-passers to hear, after which she grabbed a hold of his bigger hands in hers, the lack of gloves a precious blessing in spite of circumstance. She just realised she had never even touched this man skin-on-skin, this man who had been willing to die for her and who had risked his own life to rescue her beloved from the flames. This man whose loyalty she had rewarded with more risk and stress and pain, disfiguring him for the supposed crime of curiosity, for a mere longing for knowledge she could very much relate to herself.

"I'm sorry for causing you such... _trouble_ ", she continued uncertainly, knowing full well that the word 'trouble' didn't begin to cover everything she'd done to him over the years, for now that she herself had been on the receiving end of such practices while in a human body she finally saw that she had been nothing short of a monstrous tyrant, hardly any better than those extremist, anti-human Tanagurans that had always disgusted her. "This may come as a surprise to you, but I don't look down on you... If anything, I have a lot of respect for you, for your strength and courage. Because you never give up, you keep going no matter what, that's just... not an easy thing to do. Especially if you feel like your work isn't appreciated or doesn't count for anything, that you're just... replaceable. But you're not replaceable to me, never. And what you've built is going to last until long after I'm gone."

Tears filling his eyes for the first time since... well, probably since Guardian, Katze shook his head and tried to look away only to find that he couldn't. Holding unto her small, naked hands, he momentarily allowed himself to revel in their warmth and softness but reminded himself not to squeeze too hard. He could actually hurt her now, but he didn't want to. In fact it felt like every fibre in his body wanted to protect her. He would give his own life for hers in a heartbeat, he knew it now and he had always known it. In a small, dark corner of his heart he had always hoped that maybe his seemingly cold Master felt some of those things for him as well, that the respect and appreciation between them was mutual. But hearing those words spoken out loud without inhibition like the seemingly-young girl across from him had done just now... It was almost too much for him to process all at once and it made it as good as impossible to contain all that he was feeling in this moment. Years of his life – hell his _entire_ adult life – given freely because of something that had never been proven more than a mere suspicion on his part. A suspicion that his Blondie Master was in fact far more human than anybody else knew and that they were kindred spirits of sorts, even if the difference in social class between them meant that they could never be actual friends.

Seeing the usually so composed and stoic self-made businessman breaking down in tears, she completely misinterpreted his reaction. "Oh, shit... I totally said all the wrong things again, didn't I? Jupiter, I really suck at this emotional stuff...", she sighed, veering out of the chair with a lightning speed that didn't seem quite human. "I'll just go, I'm sorry I made you cry... again. I'm such a horrible person..."

Katze's half-numbed brain only registered the meaning of her words when she was already halfway to the door. Not even bothering to wipe the tear tracks from his face, he jumped up and went after her, following her outside before the waiter of the tearoom could even notice that he'd walked out without paying. None of those formalities that had made up his entire life seemed to matter anymore now. Because in all that time there was only one thing that had ever truly mattered to him: his Master. All the other bullshit he had just put up with for the purpose of remaining by his Master's side. Whatever his Master needed, he would provide. Whatever kind of person his Master required, he would become that person, be it house servant, crime lord, protector or friend.

Grabbing unto her slim, pale wrist before she got a chance to disappear into the crowd, Katze didn't even know what to say to her. For never in all his life had he needed to express what he was feeling inside. He had always needed to hide his true feelings away behind a stony façade of efficiency and business, denying even the existence of any emotion inside of him. And now he had become so accustomed to it, that he no longer knew how to communicate like a normal, human being. So he just held unto her wrist and didn't let go, it was the only way he knew how to speak from his heart.

 _Please don't go! I don't hate you. I could never hate you._

Instinctually glancing back in surprise – blonde hair swaying in the wind and getting covered by a thousand tiny, sparkling snowflakes – those big blue eyes locked unto his for what seemed like the very first time. Because where that icy blue had been unnaturally cold and unseeing before, now Katze could see the emotional storm raging right behind those irises. What had once been shiny but hard and non-living sapphires, had now become turbulent and living pools of liquid blue. As rays of light got caught and reflected by her long, golden hair, she looked like a radiant angel that had fallen down from heaven, disgraced and punished by the goddess of their world for daring to love men of flesh and blood more than she did her electronic, virtual maker.

"I understand that you want revenge, Katze, but if you try anything he will hunt you down and kill you. And I can't allow that, you've suffered enough on my behalf!", she cried out to get above the sounds of the snow storm and the masses outside, trying to pull her arm free only to realise that she didn't have the strength to, for the old Furniture had a deceptively powerful grip.

"He?", Katze asked absently, still holding unto her wrist tightly, not realising that the strength with which he pressed his fingers into her fragile skin was in fact enough to bruise now.

"My old friend Raoul Am. He is my... my _Master_ now", she said, still struggling with the concept even after nearly a year of officially being a Pet in the Am household. Rationally she knew that it was most fortunate that an Elite as loyal and sympathetic as Raoul had taken her under his protection, but emotionally she hated him for it. So she couldn't even imagine how much more the man now painfully squeezing her wrist had to detest _her_ for the very same reason.

"Raoul Am will hunt me down and kill me for trying to take revenge on Guy?", Katze asked as soon as his brain started working more or less right again. Surely her influence with the lead scientist couldn't be _that_ strong that he would want to respect Riki's final wish that Guy be spared?

"Wh...what? No, I mean _your_ revenge, not mine", she explained, unable to see how the dealer could have possibly misunderstood her. Could it be that after years of anticipating her every demand, he had automatically assumed that she would only communicate with him as a means to pass on her own wishes? Of course in his mind it would be impossible for her to even consider what it was that _he_ wanted rather than what he could do for _her_.

"What are you talking about? Your revenge _is_ my revenge. Always has and always will be. I don't care what your official status is or what household you belong to now, my place will _always_ be with you", Katze finally said. She probably assumed that he would treat her differently now that her official status had changed. She still didn't understand that when it came to his feelings of duty towards her, he acted on his personal beliefs rather than on the obligation imposed by rules and regulations.

"So... so you're not mad?", she asked dumbfounded, not daring to believe it. How _could_ he have forgiven all that she had done to him so easily? She doubted if even she could ever forgive her own brother and friend of many years, and Raoul had only taken her into his household to save her from an even worse fate and had treated her most civilly thus far.

"What... You mean, mad at _you_? Of course not! It's not even within my rights to be mad at you...", Katze said, reverting back to his old ways of rationally explaining his motives.

"It _is_ now that Jupiter is furious at me as well and has doled out her punishment. I'm just a Pet now, any idiot in the street can be mad at me."

Only now understanding how exactly Jupiter had punished his former Master for his indiscretions with Riki, Katze was overcome by horror and rage at the injustice of it all. As long as you did as Jupiter ordered, it was perfectly all right for you to deceive, humiliate, torture and even kill people. But the moment you dared to _love_ anyone, you had to be punished in the worst possible way. "Then I shall personally execute every last one who dares to even _look_ at you wrong!"

"You don't have to do that, Katze. Like I said, I'm not anybody of any consequence now so I have no more power over you...", she started, her voice gradually diminishing to an even softer tone.

"Ever since that day on which you saved my life I never did anything because I _had_ to or because you _ordered_ me to. I did it because I _wanted_ to, it was a conscious choice on my behalf to follow your orders", Katze interrupted her. It was probably disrespectful of him to do so, but _fuck_ good manners! He wasn't just gonna stand there and politely listen to her degrade herself in her assumption that he'd only ever followed her orders because the law had dictated it. _Goddamnit, they've taken everything real away by putting us in this system, this cage of rules and propriety!_

Watching her stare at him in mute disbelief, apparently at a loss for words at his declaration, he just couldn't hold back anymore. "According to protocol you _had_ to execute me for hacking into Jupiter's core systems, but you didn't _want_ to so you found another way. You're the one who taught me that we still have a will of our _own_ in this world, no matter what the rules are!", the redhead spoke with a fire in his words that she had never distinguished there before but had caught glimpses of in his eyes in those few but precious instances that he had let his guard down. If she had been in a human body then, she could not have even noticed those brief moments.

"You refused to just stand there and _watch_ as I was being killed just for wanting to know more than what the system had given me access to. Instead you stepped up and _did_ something, all on your own! You make your _own_ fucking decisions instead of allowing that computer to dictate each and every aspect of your life! And _that_ 's why I was glad to serve you then and I'm glad to serve you again now", he eventually finished, panting and sweating from the exhaustion that came with venting the feelings and thoughts that he'd kept locked deep inside himself for the better part of his life.

As she stared at him like she was stunned for several long seconds, Katze began to doubt whether he should have said anything. Perhaps her knowing how he truly felt would only confuse her and cause her not to contact him again in the future. And how could he help her if he didn't even know where she was or what she wanted?

"Oh, Katze...", she whispered at last, reaching out with the fragile-looking fingers of her left hand – not the one he was still clutching like a drowning man – to gently tuck his red hair behind his ear, thus exposing the scarred side of his face. "I don't deserve your forgiveness."

"That's not your decision to make, damnit! Didn't you listen to a single word I just said? We make our own choices in this life, so _I_ am the one who decides if you deserve my forgiveness or not!", Katze reacted impulsively and then fell on his knees in the snow in front of her, holding unto both her hands as in a plea of some sort. "I forgive you! Hell, I forgave you a long time ago. I just didn't know how to tell you."

Falling down on her knees as well, she grabbed unto both of his shoulders as if to shake some sense into him, only she hugged him to her and pressed her face into his neck as tears started running from her eyes, soaking the dark grey, suede blazer he was wearing in seconds.

As a crowd of onlookers gathered around the pair unseen by them to stop and stare, Yuki continued to cry her heart out while Katze accepted her embrace and softly combed his fingers through her golden hair, shushing her like you would a child or a frightened animal. "Sssssh, it's all right. All's going to be well now, don't worry. I'll take care of you, like always."

"Oh, Katze! They are all so awful...", she wailed into his shoulder, her voice small and hoarse from crying. "I hate them. I hate them all! The things they say, the things they do... It makes me sick to my stomach!"

"Sssssh, I know. It's OK, it doesn't matter. They don't know anything anyways", her refound confidante continued to sooth her, his warm breath on her neck and the subtle scent of his cologne reassuring her. His arms encasing her safely and his body heat offering refuge from the bitter cold of the blizzard that continued to blaze around them, barely noticed in the warmth of the moment between them.

* * *

 **When the future's architectured**

 **By a carnival of idiots**

 **On show**

 **You'd better lie low**

 **If you love me**

 **Won't you let me know?**

* * *

Continuing to plough his way through heaps of snow that now reached up until mid-thigh, Riki was relieved to finally recognise the shape of the building that housed the Black Market operations. Completely soaked and chilled to the bone, the shivering young man was barely able to speak when he approached the poor soul standing guard just behind the glass doors of the small downstairs lobby. Fortunately the man had already been in service back when Riki had gained his name and fame in the business, therefore he recognised the mongrel just as soon as he'd come close enough and had rubbed most of the wet raven hair out of his face.

"Riki? That you under all that? Fuck Jupiter, one hell-uv-a-nite t'be out there, ain't it?", the familiar, deep, gravelly voice sounded from underneath a double layer of fur scarves and a scruffy beard.

"Y... ye... yeah... Tr...true... enough... The... boss in...?", the nearly-frozen gangleader said with chattering teeth, still keeping his arms wrapped around his body in an instinctual, desperate effort to stop what little warmth was left inside him from slipping away.

"Sure. There's a girl with 'im though, so I dunno if he'll want to see ya jus' now, depends on if it's personal or business-related I s'pose..."

"A g... gi... girl? With K.. Katze?", Riki chuckled, gratefully leaning against the single working central heater in the lobby. "Gah! D... definitely... business-related..."

"Not too sure 'bout that", the guard mused, having never seen Katze act as lovey-dovey with anyone as he had earlier with that girl, making him conclude that she had to be a girlfriend of some sort. "But cause it's you, Riki, I'll go ask if he's got time to squeeze you in... Wait here."

"Where am I gonna go, huh? What, back out there?", the dark-featured mongrel asked with a grin, working up the courage to take off his soaking-wet biker jacket and boots. _Fuck, I can't even feel my toes anymore!_

As he approached his stoic boss's door, the guard was shockingly surprised to hear actual laughter coming from the office, and it didn't sound like the girl was the only one laughing either. Trying to contain himself and at the very least keep the surprise from his face, he carefully knocked on the door, knowing how much the boss hated being disturbed after he'd specifically asked not to be.

When no reaction came after a duration of about five whole minutes, the guard braced himself for one hell of a reprimand, and then knocked on the door once more, slightly louder than the previous time.

At last the door flew open, revealing a mostly curious and irritated but not truly livid Katze. What in the devil had gotten the boss in such a forgiving mood?

"Yeah, what is it? I thought I'd asked you to postpone _any_ and _all_ business contacts until tomorrow morning? What, you can't find a shovel to clear the entrance?"

"Actually I've just shovelled away the snow only half an hour ago, boss."

"Then why the hell are you here?", the redhead asked, getting more agitated with every extra, wasted minute it took his night guard to get to the point.

"You've got an unscheduled visitor..."

"I said no more visitors for the rest of the night!", Katze said in conclusion and was just about to slam the door in the other's face.

"Yeah, I know, but I just thought since it's Riki the Dark..."

Throwing the door back open with enough force to nearly knock the burly security guard off his feet, Katze then said: "What did you say? Riki Bison's here? Well, what does he want?"

"Euhm... he didn't actually say, boss. But I figured, with him coming here on foot through the storm... it's probably pretty important..."

"You _did_ let him in, didn't you? Jupiter's tits, a man could catch his death out there tonight! Send him up straight away, and go make us some fresh coffee while you're at it... the good-quality stuff."

Carefully shutting the door behind him as to not alarm his female companion, Katze then returned to the cosy confines of his luxurious but utilitarian office, where a fire was pleasantly burning in the barely-used stove.

"Trouble in paradise?", it sounded from the small, fluffy, blanket-covered figure currently seated in what was the boss's own favourite chair.

"You're not going to believe who the storm just blew in...", the redhead said, wordlessly accepting the extended empty cup from a porcelain-like, tiny hand and filling it back up with hot cocoa, which his Master now apparently preferred to coffee.

"Please tell me it's not Raoul Am...", the girl irritatedly sighed.

"This might come as a bit of a shock to you...", Katze carefully hedged around the revelation of the late visitor's identity.

* * *

 **Bury me in honour**

 **When I'm dead and hit the ground**

 **My nerves are poles**

 **That unfroze**

 **If you love me**

 **Why'd you let me go?**

* * *

As the mongrel made his way upstairs – heavy snow-drenched boots pounding heavily and leaving a trail of cold wetness – he was somewhat relieved to see that everything had remained just as he remembered from his early days as a Black Market courier, right back down to that ugly-as-fuck, bamboo-printed wallpaper that he'd always hated. Something about the shapes of the leaves just reminded him of either the bars of a cage or the blade of a knife. Probably he just had an overactive imagination and was looking way too much into such trivial details.

On his way up the metal, utilitarian stairs however, an element that was most definitely new suddenly crossed his path like a gust of fresh, fragrant air. Looking up as a strangely familiar feeling ran all the way down his spine, he saw one of Katze's oldest and most trusted employees escort a young, slightly-built female down the stairs.

 _Probably a new, prized pedigree Pet of some sort._

Surprised at his own uncharacteristic interest in the girl, the mongrel's dark eyes remained glued to her fair, long hair and what little of her snow-white skin was visible. As she passed right by him, she unexpectedly looked up, as if she had heard or seen something that had suddenly sparked her interest. For a brief moment, their eyes were locked on each other – bright blue meeting dark obsidian – but just as soon the moment had passed and Katze's right-hand man led the girl further down the stairs, placing a large, protective hand on her fragile-looking shoulder as he cast the passing mongrel a down-right threatening look.

 _She's not for you, gutter rat!_ , that look said all too clearly. The guy must not have recognised him due to how much he had grown over the last couple of years. Because where Riki had once been slight in built, he had filled out quite a bit on his arms, chest and abdomen, and also his hair had grown considerably, nearly long enough now to be worn in a ponytail, but because that had always been Guy's trade-mark hair, he had never even contemplated it.

Staring after her like a love-sick puppy – or more accurately a man from the slums who had hardly ever seen a female – he was genuinely surprised that instead of cowering underneath her protector's arms in fear, the young Pet in fact cast him another intensely curious look, even as she was being hurried down the stairs like a rare treasure that needed to be hidden away in a hurry.

 _I wonder where he's taking her. And why was she not afraid of me?_

Even after the last lock of shimmering, golden hair had disappeared behind the corner, Riki simply could not dispel the image of those inquisitively piercing blue eyes from his mind.

* * *

 **I took my love down to Violet Hill**

 **There we sat in snow**

 **And all that time she was silent still**

 **So if you love me**

 **Won't you let me know?**

* * *

Just as he turned away from the security monitor feed on one of his many computer screens after his esteemed guest of honour had made her exit, Katze heard his office door burst open and heavy footsteps barging in.

"What the hell are you doing in here that I gotta freeze my ass off waiting while your goon comes and kindly asks for your permission to let me in, Katze, ye old geezer?", a deep and hoarse but good-natured voice boomed from the doorway without any form of civilised restraint.

Not even noticing how his water-dripping boots were soiling the expensive-looking carpet, Riki just strode right up to the dealer's neatly-organised mahogany desk.

"You're hardly freezing your ass off while waiting in the heated hallway, are you? Last time I checked, I don't like being disturbed by mongrel hotheads just barging in here like they're about to raid the place, so please restrain yourself", the dealer scolded, although his voice sounded congenial rather than strict or angered. "That is, if you would like to be employed here again in future and not be thrown back out into the snow like the slum dog you are..."

Thundering laughter sounded from beneath pitch-black, untidy locks without inhibition, as the big, sinewy-muscled man threw off his worn, black-leather jacket and grabbed a hold of the ex-Furniture's tall, willowy frame to pull him into a tight bear hug.

"Holy shit, what a night to be out, huh?", the adult mongrel laughed as he threw himself into the nearest chair and kicked off his muddy biker boots."Y'know, for a moment there I thought I wasn't gonna make it with all toes and fingers intact..."

"Needless to say your choice of moving on foot seems somewhat impractical", Katze pointed out matter-of-factly as he moved to get the rude mongrel a mug. "Coffee?"

"Thanks, man!", Riki said as he eagerly accepted the hot brew, wise enough to blow across the surface of the liquid before burning his tongue. "Yeah, the blasted bike broke down halfway to Janus, so I didn't have much of a choice in the matter I'm afraid...", he then unexpectedly switched to a more polite form of speech, which could have sounded almost Tanaguran if it hadn't been for the strong, clearly Ceresian accent.

"And what – if I may be so bold as to ask – is it that drives you to my office in the middle of what has got to be the worst night in years to be out and about?", Katze then inquired, sitting back down in the high-backed chair at the other side of the imposing desk, once again assuming a distanced air of business and control.

"Ironically, the very same thing – or should I say _person_ – that had first driven me here all those years back", Riki spoke with a suddenly rather wistful air of nostalgia, eyes suddenly downcast as if lost in the depths of the blackness inside his coffee cup.

"I see." Dropping the business act, the redhead bent down over the desk and steepled his fingers in front of him, as if moving closer to the mongrel but at the same time shielding himself from him. "Pray tell... is there any particular reason... that you have waited nearly an entire year... to come here to discuss... that most unfortunate of events?"

Riki could tell by the long pauses in the dealer's usually fast-paced speech, that he was as much emotionally affected by the subject of Dana Burn as he himself was. But the former Furniture was simply far more adept at masking it, although of course there was no hiding those feelings from those who had also lived through them.

"I tried to move on with my life, the life I had before. But really I... I found that I could not... _would_ not... put it all behind me. I can't. There's a part of me... that got left behind there, in that place, with him... I'm just not the same man that I was before. I'm not even sure I still _want_ to be that man again", the mongrel finally said.

"And it took you a whole year to figure that out? Or did you simply owe it to yourself to wait for that particular duration of time?", Katze asked, still not turning his amber eyes away from the chapel-like structure that he had built between them with his hands, almost as if wanting to seek refuge in it.

"I figured there... was no point in hoping... where there was no hope to be had. But then, earlier tonight, I found something. Outside of Dana Burn", Riki explained, a slight shimmer of light entering his otherwise darker tone.

Finally glancing up when he heard the mongrel place something on the glass top surface of his desk, even Katze's in-bred Furniture training could not suppress the gasp that escaped his nicotine-coated lips. For right there in front of him, lying in the middle of the desk... was Iason Mink's sapphire Master ring.

 _By Jupiter. He knows. He knows the Master's alive!_

* * *

 **If you love me**

 **Won't you let me know?**

* * *

To Be Continued ...


	3. On the Coldest Winter Night

Chapter 3: The Coldest Winter Night

* * *

 _Author's notes:_

So I've finally managed to wrap up this next chapter and had been planning to post this update during the holidays, but apparently life had other plans so here it is now. Hopefully everyone's still a bit in the seasonal mood - as this chapter and possibly the next one take place against the backdrop of Christime on Amoy – and this late Christmas present is somewhat appreciated ;-)

* * *

 **Opening song:** Kamelot – Snow

* * *

As the first bright rays of sunlight shyly peeked through the thick layer of pristinely white clouds that filled the neon-lit skies above the metal-and-glass cityscape, tiny drops of melting snow continued to flutter from heavenly heights. All the way down to the overflowing gutters, where they were reduced to a chaotic mess of muddy, cold, wet sludge.

Staring at the whole anti-climactic process from the safe and warm distance of Eos Tower's Pet Salon, were a pair of arctic blue, inquisitive eyes framed by golden locks of hair that had rebelliously escaped the confines of a tightly-drawn pony tail.

"Every time I see you staring out the window like that, I think that there must be something out there that's worth seeing. But then when I look outside, I can't seem to figure out what it is... What can you see out there that I can't, I wonder?", a child-like, curious voice sounded from behind her, somewhere too close for comfort.

"You actually have enough brain cells to wonder about that then?", the blonde girl viciously asked, but it was a question that was more rhetorical than anything else. "Perhaps you're right, there might be something worthy of my attention inside these cursed walls after all", she continued, after which she turned around to gaze upon the unblemished, round, symmetrical features of the one who had been brave enough to disturb her quiet contemplations.

Wavy silver hair, wide violet eyes, cherubic face, full pink lips, big round breasts. Such was the conclusion of her brief, superficial examination. Although nowhere near Academy-grade's dazzling perfection, the female opposite her was not at all unpleasant to look at. But then she'd never really been interested in looking at Pets, had she? There was no reason why that would change now that she herself had joined their ranks, at least officially.

"I don't know how many brain cells I have, I'm not a doctor. But perhaps you know how many snowflakes are out there? Because you definitely spend a lot of time counting them... Is that what you're doing? Counting snowflakes?", the words came tumbling out in rapid succession after but one single breath.

"I haven't the slightest idea how many snowflakes are out there and seeing as how I'm not a doctor or scientist either, I honestly don't see the point of possessing such knowledge. Do you? Perhaps you might, your father is the Lord of science after all", Yuki responded in good humour, amused that one of said scientist's pretty, empty-headed creations had actually succeeded in getting her attention. At least for the time being, because undoubtedly she would get bored with this fickle creature sooner rather than later.

"My father? I did not know that I had a father, I thought I was made in a lab. Weren't you made in a lab then?", the other girl questioned eagerly, moving to stand closer to Yuki even if her stand-offish body language made it abundantly clear that such physical proximity would not be appreciated in the slightest.

"Not your biological father of course, it is merely a manner of speaking. I meant the one who has created you in said lab, my own _Master_ , Raoul Am. And no, as a matter of fact, I am myself not one of his creations", Yuki spoke truthfully, not seeing the point in lying or guarding her words in the presence of one of such low intelligence. "Perhaps that is why none of you are of any particular interest to me, no more so than those snowflakes out there. Actually those are of more interest to me, since they could in fact cause certain sensations in me if I were to venture outside in them."

"Oh, you mean Lord Am! How curious that you would call him my father, I had never really looked at it that way", the silver-haired female said, sounding excited, her eyes seeming to get even bigger against all odds, which happened more or less in sync with the swelling of her generous bosom as her breathing also increased in excitement. "But I like it, it's nice to have a father. If not him, who is your father then? And I don't know if I'm interesting, but I can definitely cause 'certain sensations' in you, if you'd like?"

A moment later the pleasant tingling of what sounded like a thousand little bells echoed across the high ceilings of the Pet Salon, causing many a Pet to look around in search of who might be the source of that heavenly-sounding laughter.

" _You_ can cause sensations in me?", said source giggled celestially but wickedly, as she stepped closer to the silver-haired Pet who had dared to interrupt her window-gazing, the incredibly high heels she was wearing allowing her to almost tower over the girl in spite of their similar height. "Don't be too sure, I am not called the 'Ice Queen' for nothing. And to answer your question: I have no father, merely a mother, who has seen fit to punish me in the most degrading of ways."

"Oh, I see. Is that why you're looking out that window all the time, you're thinking about how to escape your punishment?", the girl chirped excitedly, apparently not discouraged at all by the other's cruel, condescending manner. Or perhaps she simply wasn't perceptive enough to interpret it as such. "The Ice Queen, that sounds wonderful! Is that because you're all pretty and white and sparkly, like ice and snow? Because Yuki, that also means snow, right? You're called snow!"

"Oh my, did your darling father tell you that? Or are you in fact capable of using an encyclopaedia all by yourself?", Yuki continued to talk down to the girl, a down-right devilish smile having appeared on her pale, sharp face.

In the mean time a whole crowd of Pets had started to gather around them, all of them eager to see how Lord Am's new, mysterious Pet was going to react to Amethyst's ceaseless questioning. For the violet-eyed Pet had gained a bit of a reputation because of her tendency to constantly question everything and everyone. It was believed that something had gone wrong in her brain during the sped-up process of her growth, which had still been in an experimental phase when she had been created.

"I don't know if I'm 'capable', whatever that is, but yes I did read that in an encyclo... encypeda. You see, I was trying to find out more about you, since nobody has ever talked to you so nobody knows anything about you other than your name and who your Master is", Amethyst babbled on undisturbed, as if completely unaware of how the blonde, petite female was mocking her.

"And you didn't think that perhaps the reason for that is that I don't _want_ any one to know anything about me?", Yuki then responded angrily, stepping ever closer, until she was close enough to snarl in the other girl's round, innocent-looking face. "What, you think that you know me because you've entered my name on a console? Well, let me tell you something, _little girl_ , you didn't even get that right because Yuki is not my real name."

"It _is_ your real name now, and the sooner you accept that, the easier it will be for all of us, including you... Yuki", it then unexpectedly sounded from near the entrance of the Pet Salon.

The chorus of surprised gasps and exclamations coming from the other Pets made it very clear that the speaker was someone of great importance who did not often frequent their salon, and Yuki knew the low, honeyed timbre of the voice well enough to identify the speaker without having to turn in that direction.

"Why, if it isn't my be _loved_ and _most_ respected Master, who has no doubt come to deliver me from the exasperating boredom of this place and all who reside in it", the blonde female said in a sarcastic parody of awe and admiration, followed by more of that both enchantingly ethereal and creepily eerie laughter.

"How about you save us all the charade, Yuki, for I know for a fact that you have only been here for the last half an hour. Where exactly it is that you have spent the rest of your afternoon however, still remains unclear in spite of my best informatics' efforts at circumventing whatever virus you have apparently uploaded on your locator chip. But one thing is already crystal-clear, and that is that it was nowhere in Tanagura", Lord Am's deep voice now angrily boomed all the way across the public space to where the small, blonde girl was standing in a posture that virtually screamed haughty defiance.

* * *

 **I never count on yesterday  
Because the past can also change**

 **I'll never give myself away  
Life is worthwhile on the edge**

 **Words sound so hollow in the cold  
Maybe she's forgotten all**

* * *

"I figured there... was no point in hoping... where there was no hope to be had. But then, earlier tonight, I found something. Outside of Dana Burn", Riki explained, a slight shimmer of light entering his otherwise darker tone of voice.

Finally glancing up when he heard the mongrel place something on the glass top surface of his desk, even Katze's in-bred Furniture training could not suppress the gasp that escaped his nicotine-coated lips. For right there in front of him, lying in the middle of the desk... was Iason Mink's sapphire Master ring.

 _By Jupiter. He knows. He knows the Master's alive!_

It was only thanks to his years of training, that the former Furniture was able to prevent any visible reaction from manifesting, but if he had not already known that his Master was still alive before the young Ceresian's arrival, he was sure that he would not have been able to hide his true feelings on the subject.

Sighing, the crime lord managed to keep up his undisturbed façade as he spoke calmly and benevolently: "Riki, I want you to know that... over the years I've come to consider you as more than just an employee but rather as a... friend of sorts, which is why I don't want to give you any false hope here..."

"Bullshit!", the mongrel rudely interrupted as he jumped up from his seat as if he had been electrocuted by it. "Do you really expect me to believe this crap?! Wait a minute... you already know that he's alive, don't you? Fuck!"

"Riki, please sit down, there's no reason to get upset...", the dealer tried to calm the seething gangster who was now stalking around his office with bloody murder in his dark eyes.

"No reason to get upset?! Iason's alive and you've kept that from me, you were going to lie to me about it!", the mongrel shouted in a rage.

"Yes, I was, because I care about you, about the both of you. You knowing will only lead to further confrontations and tragedy...", the dealer tried to reason with the young man, getting up from behind his desk and carefully approaching in his most inconspicuous and non-threatening of strides.

"Well, it's too late, cause I already know! That you would lie like this to _me_ , that I could understand, but for you to turn your back on _him_ like this, after he has built you up and made you into the man that you are today...", Riki hissed as he pointed an accusing finger at the redhead's face, betrayal evident in his voice.

Of course Katze had always known that the mongrel's loyalties had shifted considerably during his time in Eos, which had been clearly demonstrated a year ago by his actions at Dana Burn, but that he would now be loyal enough to their Master to actually feel betrayed on his behalf... that simply went beyond the dealer's wildest expectations.

Holding up both hands in mock surrender and defence, Katze said: "Please just hear me out, Riki, it is not as you think. I myself have only known about this for a couple of hours, and I assure you that is not for any lack of effort on my behalf to gather intel on what had happened after the explosion last year."

Seeing that the other was about to make an angry remark, the dealer held up his hands again and continued: "But I figured, considering the high probability that Iason was in fact rendered completely inert, that it would be best not to involve you, so that at least you could have a chance at a new, normal life and future happiness."

"Fuck! I wish everyone would just stop trying to protect me, treating me like I'm this... hopeless cry baby who can't handle the truth and who needs to be constantly pampered!", the mongrel yelled, then grabbed the nearest metal chair and flung it against the wall, causing enough noise to bring in the crime boss' personal brigade of bodyguards.

"Weapons down!", Katze was quick to react. "We're just having a rather lively discussion here, I am perfectly safe. Go stand guard again outside."

Surprised at their boss' most unusual tolerance for the other man's violent outburst, it took the guards just one second too long to respond, after which the redhead lost his own patience and lashed out: "Must I always repeat myself?! I said get out! NOW!"

Cowered into action by the sudden rise in volume and aggression, the guards quickly turned tail and exited the office, leaving their boss and Riki the Dark to battle their demons alone.

"I assure you, Riki, that I am very much aware of the fact that you of all people do not need pampering. But no matter how tough you may be, you are far from being immortal and the forces at play here are powerful enough to overcome any and all obstacles. If Jupiter were to perceive you as an offence or threat in any way, there would be nothing you or I or even Iason could do to stop her wrath", the ex-Furniture tried to explain, his voice starting to regain its normal calm and calculated timbre.

Grunting in sheer frustration at feeling once again so utterly powerless, Riki walked back and forth a couple of more times, then sighed in irritation and sat back down on the remaining metal chair on his side of the desk. "So how much can you actually tell me without supposedly endangering me?"

"You need to understand that Iason is in a rather fragile state right now and that he thinks very highly of you and thus your opinion of him. He does not wish for you to see him in a weakened state, especially if it would come with a risk to your safety", Katze said, as he also turned back towards the desk and sat down in the high-backed chair across from the mongrel.

"What, he thinks I would turn my back on him simply because he was injured? Crap, he should know better by now", Riki said, shaking his head in disbelief. "I mean think of all the compromising positions he's seen me in, yet he thinks that somehow I'm gonna think worse of him if I were to see _him_ in a similar position?"

"In many ways he still thinks like an Elite... and the only kind of relationship an Elite can have with any human, is one in which their end of the bargain is to protect and lord over said human. But that does not mean that he does not care for you, Riki, in fact it means the opposite, for it matters to him that you feel confident in his ability to offer you this protection", the former Furniture elaborated, hoping that the mongrel had spent enough time in Eos to have at the very least learned those basics of Elite social regulations.

"What do you mean he still thinks like an Elite?", the mongrel remarked sharply, turning his obsidian eyes back towards the dealer's as if trying to gauge something from those seemingly emotionless, amber depths. "He's not an Elite anymore? What, Jupiter's stripped him of his rank as some kind of punishment for loving me or for nearly dying over me?"

"Unfortunately it is not quite as simple as that", Katze sighed, opening one of the heavy mahogany desk's drawers and procuring a bottle of the finest liquid amber available and two crystal glasses, which he filled to the brim. "An Elite can't just be stripped of his rank because his rank _is_ in fact who he is, what he does, his occupation in life. Therefore Iason is going through a personality crisis of sorts at the moment..."

"Wasn't he already going through such a crisis when he rushed into a burning building and got into a fist fight with a mongrel to protect another mongrel that he was fucking?", Riki pointed out as he accepted the offered glass of high-quality Scotch, downing it in one go as if it were the cheapest variety of slum beer.

"Oh, I believe that this new crisis is... quite a bit extremer. You see it's not just a social or mental change, but rather a... physical one", Katze spoke knowingly, having gone through a similar crisis himself back when had become a Furniture as a young teenager, although obviously that had not been such an extreme physical alteration in comparison.

"A physical change? How the fuck can an Elite go through a physical change, I mean, they're fucking indestructible and they can't even really feel any pain, right?", Riki asked, worry suddenly appearing in his eyes even as he tried to keep it from his voice. "How do you even begin to change something as unchanging as an Elite?"

"To be honest I am not quite sure myself as to how such a change is possible. Having gone through a significant physical change myself when I became Furniture, I still can't even begin to imagine what Iason's going through right now...", the redhead admitted.

"Shit, Katze, you've gotta let me in! You've gotta tell me what's going on! I want to be there for him, OK, I'm not just gonna abandon him, not now, not after everything that we've been through together!", the young Ceresian implored, in that moment fully realising how much his life had changed since meeting Iason Mink and certainly since Dana Burn.

Because at even the first mention or suggestion that his former Master might still be alive, he had just up and abandoned his gang all over again and come rushing into the office of a man who had betrayed him once and could sure as hell do so again. But somehow none of that seemed to matter now, cause it was no longer about just keeping himself alive, it was about someone else now, someone who he apparently had been destined to fall in love with.

"You know that I can't go against his wishes, even if legally he no longer holds any power over me now. But I promise you that I will do my best to convince him to allow you closer", Katze comforted the young man, even going as far as to atypically put his hand on the other's shoulder in reassurance.

Glancing up in surprise with tears in his black eyes, the attractive youngster then smiled and said: "Man, Katze, you're really getting soft in your old age, huh?"

"Maybe. Or maybe I'm just adapting to the situation, making myself into what is needed at this time", the former Furniture tried to rationalise his own atypically emotional response.

"And what do you think Iason needs _me_ to be at this time then?", Riki asked, sounding eager to please and be allowed back into the fold, apparently no longer caring about his mongrel pride when it came to his beloved Blondie.

"He has only ever needed you to be just as you are, Riki, your stubborn and brave self", Katze said, somewhat disappointed that apparently the mongrel thought that Iason still wanted to change him into something other than what he was.

"Yeah, I know, I just... don't Elite sometimes forget that humans change, you know, age? Cause no human ever stays in Eos long enough for that to happen, right?", Riki asked, a slight undertone of worry in his baritone voice.

"Don't be absurd, Riki, you're barely 25 years old", the dealer said while trying to hold back a chuckle. "You can't be considered old by any rational standards, regardless of wat Eosian social conduct codes state."

"That's not what I mean, Katze. I was late to grow up, and now that I have... let's just say I've filled out a bit. I went from small and scrawny to... well, to _this_ ", Riki said, indicating his muscled chest, broad shoulders and above-average height.

"I don't think it's going to make even the slightest bit of difference when it comes to you and Iason, Riki. Cause what the two of you have is very special, and whatever else it might be, I know that it's real. Physical stuff doesn't matter when what you have with each other is real", Katze said, sounding as if he were genuinely touched and awed by what he was describing. "Besides, the physical changes that Iason's gone through are... considerably greater than yours."

* * *

 **I don't remember how  
I felt the night she came**

 **Memories spin around  
They flow**

 **Don't want to let her down  
Moments disappear like shame**

 **Like snow**

* * *

"Don't you _dare_ turn your back on me!", the thundering voice shook loud enough to make every little, fragile bone in her tiny body tremble. "Not after what you have just put me through..."

Turning back around from what had been the start of her retreat to the relatively safe confines of her room, the small female hissed in a voice that might be softer in volume but that lacked absolutely nothing in fury: "Which is _what_ , compared to what _you_ have put _me_ through this past year?!"

"The truth of the matter is, Yuki", the Blondie said in a sudden, low and unhappy chuckle, "That I have not put you through anything... yet."

Sensing the change in his voice and manner, Yuki's new mammalian instincts were telling her that flight was to be preferred over fight in this situation. Slowly walking backwards in the direction of the corridor that led to her room, she found her path unexpectedly blocked by the recently-purchased Furniture, who had quietly snuck up on her from behind.

"Which, as I've come to see clearly now", her Master continued as he walked over to an antique, Chinese sideboard on his right. "Is where my many mistakes in this new relationship of ours have started."

"Get your hands _off_ me, you lowly piece of Guardian scum! How _dare_ you touch me!", she yelled as much in fright as in anger when she felt the Furniture behind her suddenly grab unto her shoulders as if to contain her.

But her attention was soon drawn back towards her Master, when he turned around and she saw what he had just retrieved from the sideboard during her pointless struggle with the Furniture.

"You wouldn't have the _guts_ to!", she screamed, this time in white-hot rage rather than fear, as the tall Elite approached her with an electronic whip in hand.

"I have to say that when Jupiter ordered me to put you in a human body, much of my work was greatly simplified by a most fascinating and convenient aspect of your biology", the scientist explained in an even, rational voice that was utterly devoid of feeling.

"My biology is none of your bloody business, you _vulture_! Come to feed on me in my time of crisis, have you? You filthy _traitor_!", she screamed, struggling and kicking against the Furniture's hold. The youngster was surprisingly strong for one of such a slight built, although of course he was still strong and tall enough to overpower a young female Pet.

"Ah, now the real nature of your thoughts finally surfaces", Raoul said, disappointment evident in his voice. "Has it ever occurred to you that Jupiter might have very easily asked another to take charge of your transformation, and that this other's first and foremost concern would not have been your comfort and well-being throughout the entire process?"

"If you cared for me at all, you would have ended my existence before this whole nightmare had even started!", she angrily remarked as he continued to calmly approach, the Furniture's persistent arms around her bird-like shoulders and chest preventing her escape. "You must have had many an opportunity to do so during those long hours when you were the only one working late in the lab."

"Ah, but then you would have never gotten the chance to be reunited with that disgusting piece of Ceres trash that you love so much, would you?!", the male, obviously much bigger and taller blonde cruelly lashed out.

"As if you would care about that! You've hated and envied him ever since you first laid eyes on him, don't pretend otherwise", she spat at him, also literally spitting him in the face right after, a slimy glob of translucent spittle dripping down his patrician, synthetic-skinned cheek.

"How positively distasteful", he merely remarked, not even bothering to wipe off the offending substance, no longer finding such human bodily fluids disturbing after his long years as a biologist and researcher. "But to continue my earlier remark: one aspect of your biology has been most helpful to me, and that is the most remarkable speed of the regeneration of your cells."

"What in the _hell_ do my regenerative qualities have got to with any of this?!", Yuki shouted, kicking the Furniture in the shins with the sharp heels of her shoes hard enough for blood to seep through his trousers. "Or do you simply enjoy hearing yourself talk so much that you would talk of just about anything at any given time!"

Smiling sadly as he grabbed a hold of her chin to force her to look him in the face, he calmly stated: "What said regenerative quality has got to do with the events at hand is I believe quite clear. The great benefit of regenerative cells is that they can be endlessly damaged to any extent, for they are able to recover from _just about anything_."

Staring at him in what was evidently pure terror for a few moments, she then burst out in what had to be laughter brought on by extreme fright and said in a trembling voice: "It's pathetic, really, you and your obsession with the physical body. You see, my cells might recover from anything as if nothing has ever happened, but my mind and my memory... that is something else entirely."

At the wordless indication of his Master, the Furniture proceeded with dragging the still-struggling girl over to a decorative, metal screen in the hallway and chaining both of her small, doll-like hands above her head.

"I think that you have known me long enough, to know that vengefulness is one of my many vices", she continued to threaten him even as her arms were being secured to the cold and unforgiving metal. "How does the saying go: revenge is a dish best served cold? I can wait for a long time, but one of these days an opportunity to get back at you will present itself. And when it does, rest assured, I will not hesitate!"

"You ought to know that there is no point to these many threats, Yuki. For I am all that you have left in this world, I am the only one who still cares about what happens to you", the tall blonde spoke with the conviction of one who feels safe in the certainty of the knowledge that he has. The simple truth was that there were no more competitors for her affection, therefore logic dictated that she would surrender to him in time, for she needed him now. She needed his care and protection just as much as she now needed air, water and sustenance. Those were the clear-cut, black-on-white facts of the matter.

Giggling like one who was possessed, she said: "Is that really what you think? You think that everyone's a self-absorbed traitor like you, just waiting for an opportunity to take advantage? Well, you're wrong! There are still people out there who truly care about me, care about me in ways that an unfeeling _robot_ like you could never understand", she said with a devilishly sharp tongue, knowing exactly where to hit him for optimal effect.

"What in Jupiter's name could you be referring to?", the Elite asked in astonishment, momentarily pausing and gesturing for the Furniture to step away. "Is that what you were out doing, looking for your remaining followers? What, did you reveal your past self to them? Are you really stupid enough now to take such a risk?"

"Being brave or loyal does not make one stupid. Because in the long run, such sentiments really start to matter. The sad reality is, that between the two of us, you are the one who will end up all alone. Because you have never had the courage to act on your feelings, but I have. It almost makes me feel sorry for you. Almost, but not quite", she concluded in a whisper, not even intentionally trying to hurt his feelings with those words, but truly meaning them as she spoke them.

"Well, since we are being candid, I don't. Feel sorry for you, that is. You see, in truth, I think that you got exactly what you deserved", the green-eyed blonde said in response, anger burning from within those emerald depths like some kind of demonic wildfire. "And was I waiting for an opportunity to see you fall off your high horse? Why yes, I was, only I had never expected that you would be headstrong enough to actually jump off it all by yourself. Chasing supposed _love_ – of all things to go mad over – after a fling with a piece of filth from the slums, which could hardly be called romantic."

"You wouldn't know what romance was if it stared you in the face, no matter how many Shakespearian tragedies you watch", Yuki hissed, the fear rushing through her blood spurring her on rather than quenching her fire. "You think that you're so much more _humane_ than everyone else in Tanagura. The one who has an obsessive interest in humanity rather than a distaste for it. The creator of life rather than the destroyer of it. The one who revels in the passionate emotions displayed in those useless works of art that you waste ridiculous amounts of money on, and for what? To compensate for being – in _truth_ – the most cold-hearted, calculated and merciless bastard of us all?"

"What, would you rather I was more like you?", he threatened, his bass voice regaining its overbearingly loud quality as his ire was sparked further. "Because you would have surely beaten yourself to death long before now."

"Like I said, praise Jupiter for small mercies. But unfortunately I'm not getting those from you, am I? From you I get the great mercy of being kept alive against my wishes", she sneered, refusing to cower in front of him, no matter what he threatened her with. For her pride was the only thing left to her now, wasn't it? That, and her love for Riki. And Katze's loyalty. Maybe there was more to life than looks, money and social standing after all.

Gesturing the boy standing closeby to remove the girl's upper clothing as if he were a mere instrument or extension of his own body, Raoul then turned his attention back towards the task at hand, already dreading the outcome just as much as he revelled in the prospect of finally getting the better of her. Of finally biting back and showing her that he was not the weakling she believed him to be. He was the stronger one now and he could be even more wrathful than she was if he were pushed too far.

"Waiting for the sun to rise and add to the dramatic effect in the lighting of this particular scene of the tragedy, are we? Just get on with it already! You know I've never been one for all that anticipation foreplay nonsense that you teach those dumb-witted sex dolls of yours", she hissed at him, frustrated at her inability to turn around and face him, her restraints keeping her face towards the iron bars that she was chained to.

"Ah, you've always been one to jump into things head-first no matter the consequences, haven't you? But I'm in control now, and I am not an impatient or impulsive man", the Blondie calmly spoke, having regained his senses and better judgement, knowing better than to allow her to anger him at a time like this. He couldn't make any mistakes now, not with her. She was too important.

"You're not a _man_ at all, you're a freaking _machine_ , that's what you are! A cheap, fake copy of the real thing that can't truly do or feel anything at all. You can't breathe, you can't drink or eat, you can't sleep... hell, you can't even speak without inhibition", she continued to berate him, seeing no point in stopping and being angry beyond measure at his audacity.

Who did he think he was, lording over her and punishing her as if she truly were just a Pet? She was still who she had always been, no matter what any laws dictated or what body she was in. Ironically she felt more like herself in this human body than she ever had in the android one. His supposed rule over her was down-right tyrannical and she would refuse to give in to it, no matter what the cost!

"I have to admit, I had not expected you to be angry like this", he mused, experimentally snapping the whip with a loud enough bang to nearly make her wet herself in fear. "But then again, we haven't really started yet, have we? I'm quite positive that I can make you break down and cry. After all, you have never felt any true pain before in your comfortable, pampered life, have you?"

"You wouldn't know the first thing about pain, no matter how many people's reactions to it or different methods to inflict it that you study", she said, trying to sound degrading but knowing that she was failing miserably at that now that a slight tremor had entered her high-pitched voice. The same tremor seemed to have entered the rest of her body as well, making her bare upper body shake like a leaf against the cold metal that she was confined to. The chilly breeze in the hallway caused further goosebumps to appear on her creamy, fragile skin and made the nipples of her small breasts stand out.

"Then I suggest that you teach me, for as you know I have a healthy appetite for learning new things, and I have a feeling that this will be a lesson that neither of us will forget any time soon", he said with a demonic grin, a sadistic undertone in his usually serene and soothing voice.

"Just shut the hell up and hit me, you hypocritical piece of scrap metal!"

* * *

 **Signs never told me anything  
Nothing I could know for sure**

 **I never knew what she would bring  
Or what I am to her today  
My words**

 **Almost swallowed by the snow  
Maybe she's forgotten all**

* * *

Entering quietly as to not to disturb the mongrels already snoring inside, Riki was strangely relieved to be home, even if his home was a rundown shack with a rusty corrugated roof full of holes. The day's events somehow made everything familiar feel strange and out of place, like he was walking around in a dream he could awaken from at any time. Carefully shutting the door behind him and locking out the gale of still-falling snow, the young man then went to the small, make-shift kitchenette and started peeling off his cold, soaked-through clothes as he went. As he was still going over the conversation with Katze in his head, he put on the kettle and procured himself a small piece of chocolate that he had hidden away at the back of one of the mouldy cupboards some time ago.

"Celebrating something, are we?", a familiar whisper unexpectedly sounded from right next to his ear.

"Holy mother of... !", Riki cursed as his heart seemed to jump up into his throat and he nearly dropped the metal mug he was holding. "Luke! You scared the shit out of me, man!"

"You seem easily spooked these days, ever since you got back from wherever it was that you went away to. Is that where you went today as well then? That secret place none of us can know about?", Luke's rough, sand-paper voice sounded from next to him, the outline of his slim but strong body barely visible in the pitch-black darkness of the sealed-up shack.

"Fuck, I'm really not in the mood for an interrogation right now!", Riki lashed out, regretting his harsh tone right away, after which he added apologetically: "You want some hot cocoa?"

"No, Riki," the other continued in a quiet but accusatory voice. "I don't want cocoa. I want you, we all do. The way you used to be."

"If that's what you want, you can just go whack off or something, cause I ain't in the mood for that any more than I am for an argument!", Riki hissed dismissively, sick and tired of the other's endless attempts at seduction.

"What, you think that what I want is sex? Hell, Riki, are we not so much more than that, partners in crime?", the other, slightly taller mongrel asked.

"Yes, we are, Luke, and I've already told you that you guys will always be like family to me", Riki tried to reassure the other while still warding off his obviously romantic interest, dividing his precious chocolate bar over two metal mugs even after the other had refused, knowing that Luke had always had a sweet tooth.

"But not like we used to be anymore? Why is that, Riki? What has changed during that time you were away?", Luke wondered, an undertone of worry and regret now replacing the unspoken accusations.

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you, you wouldn't understand...", Riki sighed, pouring boiling water over the chocolate in the mugs, allowing the sweet smell that arose to enter his nostrils and sooth his nerves.

"Why don't you trust us anymore, Riki? We've always been able to share everything with each other... What you think because we didn't get to sleep together that I don't care about you?", the dark figure next to him said, a kind of nostalgic sadness in his words.

"Listen, I know that you have feelings for me, Luke", Riki tried to explain, not sure how much he could actually tell his old friend. " I wish I could be a pairing partner to you, but I just can't, I'm sorry. It wouldn't be fair to you if my heart wasn't in it..."

"I'm not asking for your heart or even your body, Riki. All I'm asking for is your trust and your friendship...", Luke pleaded with him.

"You already have that, you will always have that", the other mongrel reassured him again, knowing full well how much of a support the thought of seeing his gang again had been to him during his imprisonment in Eos. If it hadn't been for the thought of seeing his faithful childhood friends again, Riki honestly didn't know if he would have survived the ordeal.

"Then why am I being kept in the dark like this while something's clearly on your mind, something that's making you suffer!", the other mongrel exclaimed, momentarily forgetting to keep his tone hushed as to not wake the other gang members who were sleeping only a couple of metres away from where they were standing.

"It's all right, Luke", Riki tried to hush the other before the whole gang woke up and started bombarding him with even more questions. "There's a chance now... a chance at putting things right. A chance that something good and true might finally come of all this misery", he then confided, his smile evident to his old friend, even if his face was shrouded in darkness.

"There's another lover, isn't there? That's why you think you can't confide in me, you think I'll be hurt to hear that you still love another, even with Guy out of the picture now", Luke said, unable to keep the slight tang of bitter disappointment out of his words entirely.

"Wouldn't you be hurt by that then?", Riki asked, strangely no longer caring whether he admitted it or not. So what if he had a Tanaguran lover? If Iason really was still alive, there would be no way that he could hide it from his gang indefinitely...

"Of course I would. But I'd rather you find happiness in the arms of another... than be unhappy in mine", Luke responded wistfully.

Sighing when he heard the desperation in his brother's voice, Riki said: "I _am_ happy with you, Luke, it's just another kind of happiness, an easier kind actually", Riki admitted. "I guess that maybe that's one of the reasons I just can't let this go... I've already suffered too much for this, sacrificed too much, to just give up and turn tail now. This isn't the kind of thing you can just walk away from and hope to forget..."

"You sound like you've spent a lot of time trying to do just that. Is that why you came back to us all of a sudden, only to disappear again all but a year later? You seem to have serious doubts about this relationship then... I'm assuming it is in fact a relationship and not a case of unrequited love?", Luke pried further, now equally curious as he was disappointed by the thought of Riki having a secret lover.

"Oh, it's reciprocated all right, don't worry about that. We love each other, it just took an awfully long time for us to admit it, especially to each other", Riki told his friend, feeling unusually talkative, as if a great weight had just fallen off his shoulders. "It's a different world out there, Luke, and not necessarily a better one than ours. In fact, many of the things that we take for granted simply don't exist over there, or they're forbidden by law."

"Things we take for granted? We're mongrels living in the slums, Riki, we don't _have_ anything to take for granted", Luke said, not understanding that the other wasn't referring to material things.

"We do. We have each other. And that kind of connection with someone, that's very special and truly precious", Riki tried to explain as they were sipping their hot cocoa, leaning against the counter made up of old, mismatched cupboards. "Cause most people up there are on their own, every other person's either a tool to use or a competitorout to take advantage of you. And every second brings you closer to your downfall, you have to prove that you're worthy every single moment of every single day. It's a jungle up there just as much as it is down here, only here we at least have a pack to protect and take care of us."

"Up there? What, you've been to the upper districts in the north then? Apathia or Mistral Park?", the other mongrel asked in disbelief, his eyes growing larger unseen in the darkness.

"Yeah, but it's not as great as you'd think, believe me. It's nothing to be proud of or brag about, like that idiot Kirie does. Man, he can really get under my skin with all the shit that comes out of his mouth about those places, like he's some kind of expert or king of the world just for having been there a couple of times...", Riki sneered in disgust, then took another comforting sip of hot sweetness.

"So _that_ 's why you got so angry every time he was talking about that! You've actually been up there yourself!", the other mongrel said in what was clearly awe.

"Could you please stop talking as if it's some great feat to have been there? Most of the time it was truly horrible, like some never ending nightmare I couldn't escape from...", Riki started, not having expected that Luke of all people would have been impressed.

"Wait, did you like... actually _live_ there during all that time you were away?", the other mongrel continued to question him incredulously.

"I wouldn't exactly call it _living_ , but yeah, I stayed there, didn't exactly have much of a choice since I wasn't allowed to leave...", Riki said matter-of-factly, but to one who knew him as well as Luke did, the despair that the mere memory of it instilled in his proud leader was very obvious.

"What do you mean you weren't allowed to leave?", he interrupted, sounding upset all of a sudden.

"Oh, man... You have no idea what those people are like, Luke. They treat other human beings like they're possessions, just things you can toy with or means to an end", Riki explained. "But I guess if I'd just been a toy, I'd been kicked out way sooner, and there's no way you'd risk your own life for a toy..."

"Is that why you've steered clear of Guy ever since you got back? Did he and this other lover of yours have some kind of fight? Is that how he lost the arm?", Luke continued to question, suspecting that his old friend and gang leader might not be in such a talkative mood anymore come morning light.

"Yeah, but a lot more happened than just a fight between competitors. Guy, he... took me, kidnapped me. And then he... cut me up... out of spite, cause I'd chosen someone else over him. And he'd rigged the building with explosives, so the whole place went up in flames...", Riki told the other mongrel, grateful for the darkness that hid his facial expressions from view. A second later he also noticed some wetness on his cheeks, which he chose to ignore.

"Wait, did this happen at the old ruins of Dana Burn? Was that what the whole explosion and fire over there was about?", Luke asked, finally putting two and two together.

"Yeah", Riki admitted, but was interrupted again before he could say any more.

"No shit, man! Talk about going out with a bang... But weren't you and your lover injured in the blast then? And you said that Guy cut you up... did he cut you up real bad? Where did he cut you?", the other mongrel continued to pry.

"I'm not sure I want to talk about this in such detail, Luke", Riki said, already regretting that he had told him that much.

"Wait! Do you mean that he... cut you up down there?! Holy shit! I can't believe that he'd do such a thing! So did you recover fully or...?", Luke asked, concern evident in his voice. Could that be the reason why Riki had turned down all of his advances?

"Don't worry, I've fully recovered, Katze helped me escape the fire and put me in a healing tank", Riki reassured, only momentarily contemplating to leave the other to believe that he was damaged goods and thereby end his relentless romantic pursuit.

"Wait... like ruthless Black Market boss Katze? He actually helped you?", Luke asked incredulously, not quite believing that their gang leader had in fact been on such close and personal terms with the notorious crime lord.

"It's complicated, Katze and my lover... Let's just say they have a good relationship and a bit of a common history. But I've already told you too much, I don't want to compromise your safety...", Riki sighed, realising that he had allowed his own feelings of relief and hope to cloud his judgement of just how much information he could share with his friends. Luke already knew too much as it was, and he was smart enough to fill in many of the blanks all by himself.

"So where's your lover now? We are talking about a _he_ , right?", the other mongrel questioned further.

"Yeah, it's a _he_ all right, although I've also had a bit of a fling with a female during my time in Tanagura actually", Riki said, somehow no longer really caring how much he revealed to the other, he was just so sick and tired of all of those secrets that he always had to keep locked inside of him. "I wasn't even sure that he'd survived the fire until today, but as far as Katze has told me he's alive and well, although it didn't sound like it was under very agreeable circumstances... I have half a mind to try and go break him out, or at the very least see him again."

"Wait, _Tanagura_? Your lover is from Tanagura? You actually lived there yourself, in freakin' Tanagura?!", Luke cried out nearly loud enough to wake the other sleeping mongrels.

"Ssssh! I'd rather not have everyone in all of Ceres know about it!", Riki hushed with a sense of urgency, literally going as far as to put his hand over the other's mouth.

"You know, Riki, we've all been awake for a while now", it unexpectedly sounded from the direction of the sleeping corner, where the stirring of several bodies could now be heard. "So how about we make some light here so that you can share the rest of this amazing, secret tale of yours?"

* * *

 **She is the poison in my mind  
The thorns in my head**

 **She has no mountain to be climbed  
No faults to regret**

* * *

Barely conscious, her entire back feeling like it was on fire, she unexpectedly managed to fling herself off of the cot, after which she painfully landed on the hard, cold tile floor with a grotesquely loud smack. Fortunately the breath was instantly knocked out of her, preventing any loud sounds from unwantingly falling from her lips at the new waves of pain brought on by the harsh impact with the unyielding stone. She then started to painstakingly crawl her way in the direction of where she suspected the door was, because as soon as it was closed it virtually melted into the white, pristine smoothness of the neon-lit walls of the Pet room. Not to mention her vision and orientational bearings weren't exactly in the most optimal of conditions at the moment, tears blurring whatever images she could discern and the mother of all headaches pounding away against her skull.

Slithering along on her stomach like some primeval snake moving on nothing but the instinct to survive, she gradually but infuriatingly slowly moved closer and closer to the white, painfully-bright blur of where she reckoned the door had to be. Finally her fragile, bruised fingers made contact with the cool, smooth surface of the wall, feeling around for that slight indentation that would indicate the outlines of the invisible exit. After what felt like another eternity of feeling around – red smears of blood having somehow ended up decorating a whole section of formerly pristine whiteness – she finally found the slight line that she had been looking for. Only now came the hard part: how to open it from the inside without any access to control panels from this end?

Cursing, she realised that the whole painful voyage from the sleeping cot to the door might have been for nothing, for in her pain-induced haze she had completely forgotten that she no longer had a Master ring on her finger, capable of opening all doors in Tanagura with a mere thought. Suddenly the realisation of her own hopelessness simply became too much, and she burst out in a fit of harsh yelling and useless, insanely painful bashing against the inside of the door, painting the rest of it blood red. For hours or more like what had felt for centuries, she had been able to contain her tears, but now that she was alone and had something other than the torturous burning of an electronic whip to consider, cracks finally started forming in her icy, mental façade of unfeeling distantiation. Irritatedly, she rubbed at her eyes in a useless effort to keep the unwanted fluids from leaking out.

Then all of a sudden a familiar, serene voice sounded from above, no doubt from the speakers located somewhere in the equally white ceiling of the room:

"As I am sure you know, there really is no point whatsoever in continuing your assault on that door. It is simply impossible to open it from the inside without the aid of any other electronics, which of course I have not provided you with."

Starting to yell like a mad woman all over again as soon as she heard that infuriatingly calm voice, she actually succeeded in getting up and on her feet, after which she began to not just pound but also kick against the mercilessly unyielding walls surrounding her, imprisoning her in this white hell of powerlessness.

"You will pay for this, I swear it on all that is holy!", she crooked, hardly any sound at all coming from her sore throat in spite of all the fury that she was feeling inside.

"Not from in there, you won't. And to be honest I very much doubt that you will be able to make me pay at all, even after I let you out of there, which I am not very much inclined to do any time soon if you keep up this incessantly childish behaviour", the smooth voice pointed out, entirely undisturbed and rational.

"YOU TREACHEROUS BASTARD!", she roared, the actual words barely distinguishable behind the animalistic sound. "I WILL MAKE YOU FEEL SORRY FOR THIS! I WILL MAKE YOU BEG LIKE A BITCH IN HEAT!"

"I think I will go for a long walk now, there's something about the background noise here that I simply find somewhat uncivilised", the inhumanly smooth voice continued. "I pray said noise will have dissipated by the time I get back, otherwise I might forget to feed the source of it."

"I DON'T WANT YOUR FOOD, YOU UNGRATEFUL SNAKE! I SHALL EAT YOUR INSIDES AFTER I'VE MUTILATED AND MURDERED YOU!", further screams resonated from within the white, polished prison.

But no matter how many more unsavoury sounds Yuki managed to push from her tiny lungs and injured throat, no further response came from the speakers above, suggesting that her Master had probably put deed to word and had left the premises.

Absence most definitely did not make her heart grow any fonder of her former friend and current tormentor, and she continued to hit the inside walls of her cell until she no longer knew where her own limbs ended and the synthetic material of the walls began. Tears and rage had rendered her virtually blind and the only feeling that remained in her body was that of hurt and exhaustion. Continuing as she was, she had all but put herself in a frenzy or coma of sorts, essentially asleep on her feet even as her limbs continued to attack everything within her reach as if on auto-pilot. Her body now having become like a distant memory numbed by pain and fatigue, all but one thought remained in her thoughts: _let me out_!

As she then lay there unseeing and practically unconscious on the floor, her entire body convulsing like one who was having a fit, she did not even notice the change that had impossibly occurred. For only a distance of half a metre from where her bruised and battered small body was lying shakily, the electronic door of her prison had in fact opened, allowing a slight beam of sunlight to enter and cast its dim light on her features, surrounding her in what appeared to be a golden aureole of light.

* * *

 **I don't remember how  
I felt the night she came**

 **Memories spin around  
They flow**

 **Don't want to let her down  
Moments disappear like shame...like snow**

* * *

"I'm really not sure I want to share any more about it than I already have," the dark-skinned mongrel admitted rather sheepishly. "Let's just say the whole array of events has put a serious dent in my pride and has forever changed the way I think about life in Tanagura."

"But you went back for your lover in the end, didn't you? The two of you truly cared for each other, even if you were from two completely different worlds", Sid said, sounding like some lovesick schoolboy who's just heard a tale of true love.

"Actually my lover was more or less responsible for many of the bestial acts performed against my wishes, which puts it all in a far less romantic light than you just have", Riki remarked, reaching for the remainder of his stout bottle and contemplating opening another one. But no, he had to keep a very clear check on himself and how much exactly he revealed about what had transpired during those 'missing' years when he had been imprisoned in Eos.

"So how do you intend to rescue your beloved from Tanagura, now that he's apparently been put under lock and key?", Norris wondered, seeming hell-bent on joining some kind of insane suicide mission to rescue someone he had never even met before. Strange how even the mention of impossible love could make some people go completely insane in an instant.

But then again every single one of the brave young men facing Riki would be willing to follow their esteemed leader straight into hell. And now that they knew that it was not money or material comfort that had driven their leader to abandon them but that crazy feeling called love, well, who were they to judge? For had they not all of them felt the effects of what love could do to a man, at some point or other in their tough and lonely lives as slumdogs?

"No idea, Katze wouldn't tell me anything useful on the subject. He probably thinks he's defending his charge's pride or something like that, or maybe he's specifically asked that I be kept in the dark, to protect me from a far worse retribution", Riki speculated, not sure at all why Katze would refuse to help him even if he was very clearly still 100% loyal to Iason.

"Maybe old Katze's also got feelings for your lover and is now trying to steal him away from you, Riki", Luke suggested, part of him praying that Riki's lover would betray him with Katze so that he in turn might still have a chance with the dark-skinned, sexy mongrel he'd had a crush on ever since he could remember.

Their leader's laughter then filled their cramped, barred-up little shack, seemingly soaking up the countless sheets and rags that had been stuffed into the many holes and cracks that would otherwise allow the icy desert winds to cut through the ramshackle confines of their make-shift living space.

"Well, I can tell you one thing for sure: whatever interest Katze has in Iason, it's definitely not of the sexual variety", Riki said, still chuckling as he took another swig from his stout bottle.

"What makes you so sure then?", Sid wondered. "From what you've told us, this Iason's very attractive, so why wouldn't Katze be interested in him like that?"

"Cause Katze's not interested in anyone like that, no matter how hot they might be, it's like he's immune to it", Riki tried to explain reasonably without blowing his former boss' cover, for that surely wouldn't serve to make the dealer any more inclined to help bring him into contact with Iason.

"OK, now that all that's off my chest... How about we go out for a joyride into town?", the gang leader then suggested with a naughty shimmer in his pitch-black eyes. "It's near Christime and we haven't stolen a single Mass present yet this year."

Cheering and finishing their bottles of poisonous beer, the gang members then put on all the clothes they could find in a somewhat pointless effort to form more layers of protection against the biting winter chill. After pouring what little gasoline reserves they had left into their old, rusty bikes, the whole gang of mongrels went on their merry way and bravely rode into the darkness of the snowy night, following their fearless leader in what promised to be another battle against the tyrannical supremacy that made up the rest of the city of Midas.

Once they'd arrived at the edges of Janus without being spotted by the authorities, they then ditched the bikes in an abandoned, trash-littered alley and continued through the snow on foot into the busy entertainment district known as Sasan. As usual, the gang was split up into various smaller groups of two and one mongrel in each group was handed an analogue, battery-powered walkie that they could use to stay in touch with the others throughout the operation.

"OK, I know it's the holiday season and there's lots of fun to be had, but everybody stick to the plan and make sure to get your hands on as many essentials as you can", Sid instructed as he handed out hand-written, crumpled lists of all the things that they'd need to make it through the harsh winter alive, preferably with all toes and fingers still attached. "The weather's very nasty this year, so please don't forget about the matches and the extra blankets."

"Sure thing, Sid, we'll be sure to rob us some fancy furcoats and bonnets to match", Norris jokingly said. "Man, we'd really be a sight to behold in those, wouldn't we?"

"It doesn't matter what it looks like, as long as it's warm and practical", Riki pitched in, appreciating Sid's talent for planning but also recognising the need for a voice of authority to back it up. "Remember: our very survival will depend on the spoils of tonight's raid", he pointed out, reminding himself just as much as the others that there would be no room for any distractions during their robbing spree.

 _I can't be thinking about Iason now, I gotta focus on what's in front of me._

But it was as if the more Riki tried not to think about his Tanaguran lover and former jailor, the more unwanted thoughts of him would come to the forefront of his mind ...

* * *

 **I never count on yesterday  
Because the past may not exist**

 **I'll never give myself away  
When there's reason to resist**

 **Words draped in crystals melt away**

* * *

Nervously glancing left and right, Yuki hesitantly placed one small, bare foot on the white marble floor of the hallway right outside the Pet room that had formerly imprisoned her, as if she were expecting that it were all part of some elaborate hoax to trick her and alarm bells would start going off any second now.

One foot outside the cell ...

Then a doll-like hand, followed by another hand, and finally another foot ...

But still no alarms started blaring and nobody appeared to stop her from moving down the hallway, first creeping slowly, then walking at a regular pace, and finally running like the devil himself were on her heels. As she ran, a mental blue-print of sorts appeared in her mind, the shortest route from the Pet room to the front door clearly mapped out.

 _This is it, he's not here and he thinks that I can't get out, he's finally let his guard down!_

As the many potted plants and trees that decorated the main entrance appeared in the distance of the hallway, the realisation of a route outside of the palatial apartment also appeared in her mind and she stopped dead in her tracks.

 _Shit, I'm practically naked!_

 _I can't go outside like this in the middle of winter, I'd freeze to death!_

Turning around and already mapping out the route to the nearest, easily-accessible wardrobe, she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks when she heard a stern, familiar voice coming from right behind the corner.

"And just where do you think you're going, young lady?"

Looking in the direction of the sound as if ready to either pounce on top of it or run away from it, a soft sigh of relief could be heard escaping from her pink, rosy lips.

 _Thank Jupiter, it's just the Furniture. I can handle one lousy Furniture, can't I?_

"Outside, so how about you be a good boy now and fetch me a decent wintercoat", she said, the slightly breathless quality of her high-pitched, girlish voice not exactly adding to the authority behind it.

"Do you honestly expect that ordering me around like that is going to work to your advantage? If so, then I fear your intelligence is far below what the Master so proudly claims it to be", the young eunuch said with a cruelly mocking sneer, sick and tired of being told what to do by the arrogant and ungrateful Pet. The truth was that she didn't deserve her Master's love, not with the way she'd been acting, female or not.

"I'm warning you, I'm not in the mood for this right now. Either you do as I say or you get out of my way!", she hissed quietly, sounding uncharacteristically angry to the ears of those who knew what cues to listen for. Unfortunately the young Furniture across from her did not know those cues, nor had he ever even bothered to listen for them. For his Master was a patient, caring and understanding one and there was no need not to incite the wrath of a mere Pet, was there?

Laughing right in her face as if she'd just told a particularly funny joke, the youngster then approached her with what appeared to be his Master's stunning rod, a down-right sadistic smile appearing on his otherwise inexpressive, pale features.

"I advise you to put that thing away right this instance! Or you're not going to like what I'm going to do to you with it, _boy_ ", she whispered dangerously, the spark of what promised to be hellfire igniting in her bright blue eyes. She was definitely done taking this _crap_ , especially from some nameless and utterly obsolete piece of Furniture. Memories of how the boy had gloated while Raoul had been punishing her came to the surface of her formidable mind in rapid succession, as if trying to pressure her into violent acts of revenge.

"What _you_ 're going to do with it?", he continued to mock her. "What on Amoy do you imagine it is that you're going to do with this then? You couldn't even take it from me if you tried, but of course... you're not really going to try, are you? You're all bark, no bite, just like all you miserable little whores are."

"You see, that's where you're wrong, because I am no whore", she said, suddenly all quiet and calm, like the eye of a storm. "In fact I wasn't originally manufactured for pleasure or aesthetics, but rather for intelligence and viciousness."

"Is that what the Master told you? That you're not like the others, that you're his very special and unique creation?", Damian gloated, but she could tell by the look in his dull, brown eyes that on some instinctual level he was starting to have doubts.

"No, that is not what Raoul has told me at all, for my mind is no creation of his but one of Jupiter's", Yuki said, not sure why she was even bothering to try and explain it to him, as it had already become abundantly clear to her that for a Furniture the boy was seriously lacking in both manners and wits. His time in Eos would have been short-lived regardless of who his Master or charges were, for he possessed certain personality traits – first and foremost among them self-importance – that were considered highly undesirable in a Furniture.

"How _dare_ you call him by his first name like that, you ungrateful, skinny little misfit!", the Furniture then burst out in anger, an undertone of jealousy becoming evident in his words. "He doesn't need you or care for you for that matter, you're nothing to him but an elaborate, absolutely useless ornament that's proving to be far more trouble than it's worth and that'll be out of fashion in no time anyways!", he continued, after which he made the fatal mistake of approaching and trying to grab the girl with the icy eyes ...

* * *

 **I don't remember how  
I felt the night she came**

 **Memories spin around  
They flow**

 **Don't want to let her down  
Moments disappear like shame**

 **Like snow**

* * *

"How about this place? Looks like they're also selling coats and jumpers...", Sid remarked as he and Riki walked past the pinetree-lined entrance of a busy clothing store, the multi-coloured lights decorating the shop windows beckoning them closer.

"I don't know, it looks pretty expensive so there's bound to be a ton of security cameras in a place like that ...", Riki started, then stopped abruptly.

"Riki? What's wrong?", the other mongrel asked in worry, not liking the slight scowl that had just appeared on his old friend's face.

"Back away very slowly and inconspicuously, there are Dark Men patrolling right across the street", Riki whispered with a sense of urgency as he started leading the other mongrel back the way they came.

But as soon as what appeared to be the leader of the squad of Dark Men looked their way, Riki knew that the combination of their threadbare, old clothes and his dark features would surely give them away and therefore did the only thing that he could.

He ran.

And as expected, the Dark Men took the bait and sprang to action in pursuit of the fleeing dark-haired mongrel, completely missing the other mongrel who was still standing outside of the clothes store, seemingly frozen in place with a stunned, scared look on his face.

Looking back and seeing every single Dark Men on his tail, Riki knew that he'd made the right choice and had at least given Sid a chance to get away. Now all he had to do, was get himself to safety, which was proving more difficult than he'd thought cause as it turned out the Dark Men following him had had their transportation parked closeby and were now pursuing him by hoverbike.

 _Fuck, how the hell am I supposed to outrun them on foot?!_

As he ran around the corner and glanced upwards, the answer presented itself to him as the elevated train passed by overhead. If only he could get to the nearest platform before the train did and manage to sneak aboard undetected ...

But as he made his way through the crowd and approached the stairs leading up to the platform, he could already hear the thundering of the oncoming train and knew that he couldn't possibly make it up there through all of those people in time. As he moved up the stairs regardless of the hopelessness of the outcome of his plan, another plan then came to mind when he'd finally reached the platform and could already hear the loud voices of his pursuers right behind him as he saw the train rushing out of the station.

Running right to the edge of the now near-empty platform, Riki then kicked off one of his tell-tale leather boots and left it right there in the snow next to the tracks, after which he quickly dashed through the nearest door, which turned out to be the public ladies' bathroom. Quickly hiding in one of the stalls, Riki concluded that one of his shoes had probably not been the best choice, as even in the relatively warm inside space he could already feel the cold nibbling away at his toes right through his thin, worn socks.

"Where the fuck did he go?! I swear I saw him walk up these stairs just now!", a loud voice boomed right outside the bathroom door.

"Yeah, me too, he's gotta be here somewhere... Hey look! Isn't that his boot over there?"

If only he could fool them into believing that he'd gotten unto the train that had just left, maybe they'd go back downstairs and he could sneak aboard of the next train that came before they realised they'd been tricked.

"I think it might be... Yeah, looks like it, and sure smells like it too! You reckon he got unto that train that's just left?"

"He must've flown onto it then, cause I could already hear the doors closing when I saw him reach the top of the stairs just now..."

 _Shit, they're on to me!_

"But if he didn't get unto the train, then where the hell did he go? He can't have just vanished into thin air, can he?"

"Nah, he couldn't have... Say, what's through that door over there?"

"Ladies' bathroom by the looks of it... What, you don't think he went in there, do ya?"

Just as Riki heard the footsteps approaching the door of his hiding place, he could hear a new crowd of commuters make their way unto the platform, impatiently pushing the Dark Men aside as they moved towards the ticket machines. It couldn't be long now until the next train arrived and with this new crowd right outside the door, maybe he still had a chance ...

Just as that hopeful thought occurred, the quietly crouching mongrel heard the door to the bathroom open. _Fuck!_

But then he heard the squeaky voice of a girl and let out a way-too-loud sigh of relief. It wasn't the Dark Men and in addition they'd be less inclined to burst in here if there were women inside.

"Do you really think it's such a good idea just to go on a shopping spree while your Master's away from home, Yuki, dear?"

And even better still, they were apparently Pets from Tanagura, which would make his pursuers even less inclined to enter, for of course they wouldn't want to piss off an Elite.

"Oh Amethyst, my endearingly innocent sweetheart, what better time could there possibly be for it then? Besides, I very much doubt he'll even notice at all that any funds have been taken out of his account", the other female responded in an unusually direct and steely tone for one of pedigree breeding.

"Really? My Master would notice that right away, he's even severely punished me once just for spending only 10 cents above the amount that we'd agreed on", the first Pet said, sounding shocked but at the same time fascinated by her peer's careless and rather offensive words.

"That's cause your Master is a precision prick who'll take any excuse to be unnecessarily cruel, especially where it concerns his money, the greedy bastard", the high-pitched response sounded from closer to the stall where Riki was hiding as the girl turned towards the mirror above the metal sink.

"Oh? I've never really thought about him that way... but now that you mention it, why, I suppose that I can't really disagree", the other girl said, uncharacteristically inclined to go along with the foul-mouthed attack against her own Master. "But then why do you hate your Master so much? He's nothing at all like my Master, he's..."

"Caring, considerate, compassionate ? Sure he is, just not where it concerns me, because I am not dense enough to be deserving of his nice, human side", the girl in front of the mirror said in a down-right degradingly mocking tone. "But I'm sure he'll be all heartbroken when he comes across that crappy Furniture of his, why, he might even shed a tear for one so young and utterly brainless. Boohoo, poor Damien, or whatever that ill-mannered idiot's name was. He even scratched me in the face, the little shit..."

"What do you mean whatever his name _was_? And why would your Master be heartbroken, did something happen to the Furniture?", the other girl asked, a hint of worry in her voice now, even if she still didn't sound very inclined to disagree with her friend, if friends was in fact what those two were to each other.

"Let's just say that he finally got what he deserved. Oh my, that green-eyed motherfucker was right, I do heal quickly...", turning around on high heels – gold-leafed and studded with tiny diamonds Riki could see from underneath the door of his stall – the girl turned back towards the other as if showing her face. "Not a single mark on me, and that only a couple of hours after the injury was inflicted."

"Wow, Yuki, that's amazing! I didn't know anybody could heal that fast! But why would a Furniture injure a Pet's face without their Master's permission?", Amethyst asked in concern, having picked up on the cues that something very wrong had to have happened at the Am household.

"Fear of death is a very powerful motivator, Amethyst, my darling", Yuki explained matter-of-factly, as if they were merely discussing what clothes to wear. "Now, let's get this disgusting thing over with then, I swear this bloody cold is making me urinate every five minutes."

"Indeed it is very cold out here, I'm glad that you thought to bring these fur coats. Have you been outside in Midas before then?", the curious girl continued to pry as the both of them walked towards the nearest stalls.

"Not really, but I know enough about the human body to figure that an environmental temperature of minus 5 degrees Celsius isn't exactly agreeable ...", Yuki explained, not sounding conceited at all at possessing such knowledge about the world outside of the safe confines of the golden cage that was Eos. Then when she went ahead and opened the door of the nearest bathroom stall, any notion of possessing any knowledge at all about what could occur in Midas seemed to fly right out the window when she saw a tall, dark mongrel crouching on top of the toilet lid of the stall she'd just stepped into.

To top things off, the outer door to the public bathroom was thrown open only about 3 seconds later and a whole squad of big, armed men rushed in shouting and waving laserguns around.

Reacting much faster than the grown mongrel across from her could, the blonde Pet was quick to shut and lock the stall door behind her before the intruders got a chance to peek inside, after which she joined her girlfriend's high-pitched screams as the men ran in and started throwing open the doors of random stalls.

"For fuck's sake, you idiots, there are females in here! What, you want some high-up Midas citizen or a Lord of Tanagura to sue us for frightening the shit out of his women?!", the guy who was apparently in charge of the squad barked out as soon as he heard the female screams echoing through the bathroom. The same guy then continued in a softer voice which he probably imagined sounded soothing: "It's quite all right, ladies, this is just a routine bathroom check, nothing to worry about."

Gesturing with a finger on her mouth that the mongrel had to be quiet, Yuki could not help but study the man's dark, strong features in more detail. Even if the tall stranger was made up out of exotic and imperfect characteristics that would not be considered attractive in a Tanaguran Pet by any standards, the whole made up by those characteristics was actually not displeasing to the eye at all. Moreover there was something vaguely familiar about the stranger, making Yuki feel safe and at ease with him right away, in spite of the more rational part of her mind's judgement.

"Nothing in any of the empty stalls, boss", they heard one of the armed men bark.

"All right then, men, head on out! I want eyes on every inch of this platform, he must still be in the area and the next train's due to arrive any minute now...", the leader then ordered.

With a lot more noise and door banging than was strictly necessary, the whole squad then filed back out of the ladies' room, shutting the outer door behind them with an extra loud bang.

After a total of five long minutes of silence had finally passed, the doors of the two occupied stalls slowly swung open again and the occupants exited cautiously.

For a moment the blonde, petite girl and the tall, dark man just stood there staring at each other, but before either one of them had had a chance to speak, the purple-eyed Pet excitedly chirped: "What is he doing in the ladies' bathroom? Why is his skin that dark a colour? And why is he only wearing one shoe?", after which the other two burst out laughing, the celestial, high-pitched and rumbling, deeper tones making for a surprisingly pleasing harmony.

"Why how about it, young man? Surely you owe us an explanation after that we have sheltered you from the authorities in this uncalled for manner?", the blonde, blue-eyed Pet demanded in a way that could have actually been authoritative if it weren't for the disarmingly cute way in which she turned up her tiny, mouse-like nose as she said it.

"Ergh, yeah, I was out stea... I mean, shopping for some winter supplies, and then they just started chasing me... so then I went up here but I just missed the train... then I figured that maybe if I could get them to _think_...", the mongrel began to explain, agreeing that at the very least he owed his two saviours that much.

"You left the other shoe on the platform so that they'd think you'd gotten unto the train and stop searching the station", Yuki finished his line of thought for him.

Also a part of him was reminded of the conversations he'd used to have with Mimea back in Eos. There was something very reassuring and comforting about talking to somebody that innocently ignorant. But at the same time the blonde Pet – like Mimea – had this fiery quality to her, as if in spite of her sheltered and disciplined upbringing she knew her own mind and would not be persuaded to go against her personal beliefs and principles.

"But why would they think that you were on the train because your shoe was on the platform? I mean, people don't take off their shoes to get unto trains, do they?", Riki then heared the purple-eyed Pet wonder, not as quick to pick up on his meaning as her friend had been. Truth be told, the blonde girl was remarkably sharp for one of her class. And hadn't he already seen her somewhere before? There was something very familiar about her...

"Not everything that people do in their lives is intentionally done so, Amethyst, in fact most of human activity is entirely random and accidental. One of those things is unintentionally losing a shoe while trying to quickly get unto a train in the middle of a crowd of people, it happens more often than you would think", she patiently explained to her friend, as if used to dealing with and explaining things to people who were far less knowledgeable than she herself was.

That kind of patience Riki knew only came with either age or experience. In the slums teenagers would have to grow up quickly if they'd hoped to have any chance at all to survive, but the knowledge gathered by older mongrels often proved vital for the survival of the younger ones, which was how the gangs had first come into existence, replacing the hierarchical organisation of the old concept of the family in much the same way in which the Midasian PAM and the Tanaguran class system had.

"How about I buy you ladies a drink to show my gratitude?", the mongrel then suggested, not quite understanding himself why he wanted to get to know these Pets better, especially the blonde, haughty one.

Looking back at the young man, Yuki was somewhat shocked to see how tall and muscled he was now that he was no longer crouching inside the tiny stall. He nearly towered above her just as much as Raoul did, definitely more so than Katze did. But what Katze had in height, he most definitely lacked in strength of build, his limbs still of a more sinewy and willowy quality in spite of his older years, whereas this man had broader shoulders and a slightly more bulky built.

Grateful for her choice of high heels even if they were currently torturing her feet, Yuki cast out her animosity with sheer power of will and said with a bright smile: "That is very gallant of you indeed, young man. We would be most delighted to join you for a hot drink."

After which all three of them exited the bathroom, a couple of by-standers throwing them dirty looks as they went on their way to the nearest pub or tearoom, the snow having started to fall again, a few stray flakes of it capturing Riki's attention by the way in which they reflected the golden glimmer of the blonde female's hair.

 _What the hell is the matter with me? I've never been interested in any Pet in this way!_

"Yuki?", the other girl quietly asked as the two of them then followed the mongrel's lead. "Are you sure that this is such a good idea? I mean, he looks very dark, his clothes are filthy and we don't know anything about him..."

"Why of course he looks dark, all mongrels from Ceres do. And as a matter of fact I do know him, he works for Katze in the Black Market", she argued, catching the mongrel off guard with that knowledge.

"Riiight... that's where I saw you before, isn't it? On the stairs to Katze's office?", Riki asked, having heard every single word they'd said even if he'd been pretending not to. He then stopped when they passed a dustbin near the end of the platform and began to search it for his missing shoe, the snow definitely not improving matters for his freezing foot.

"Indeed, how observant of you to remember that. But then I suppose you would have to be observant to work as a courier for Katze", she said shrewdly, helping him dig through the garbage as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world for her to be doing.

"You're not too bad yourself, but then you'd also have to be rather quick-witted... to work as a spy for Katze?", Riki guessed, having never encountered any Pets working for Katze, especially while they were still living in Tanagura. So what other purpose could the crime boss possibly be have with a Pet in the Black Market?

Laughing at his entirely logical but mistaken assumption, Yuki explained: "Me, a spy? Why, I suppose you could be on to something there, I'm pretty talented when it comes to gathering intel and of course life in Eos is painfully boring. But no, me and Katze merely know each other in a more... personal... capacity, you see, we used to belong to the same household."

Finally giving up the search for the missing boot, Riki then turned away from the dustbin, his interest sparked, and asked: "You used to belong to the Mink household then?"

Yuki also stopped searching the trash and then turned to look the mongrel in the eye as she heard the sudden, poorly-masked interest in his voice at the mention of that particular household. Walking right up to the much taller, adult man she then went to stand on tiptoe as if to get a better and closer look at him, squinting her big, blue eyes as if trying to improve her vision or see something beyond what was in front of her. For a moment there, Riki thought that he could discern a brief flash of recognition in the enchantingly blue depths of her eyes.

 **I am breathless  
Need I say**

There was a relatively long pause, during which only Yuki's steamy breathing could be heard, and then she said: "My... apologies, I believe we have not yet been properly introduced. My name is Yuki Am and this is Amethyst Lagat, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance", after which she offered him her outstretched, doll-like hand.

 **How could you find me here?**

Smiling even if he was very much caught off guard by the uncharacteristic display of the stunningly beautiful Pet's good manners towards a mongrel, Riki took the offered hand into his bigger but surprisingly soft one and said: "I'm Riki, Riki Bison, and the pleasure is all mine."

 **You, of all, have crossed my way**

For a long time they just stood there, holding hands and looking at each other as if the other were the most fascinating thing they'd ever laid eyes on, as the snow continued to descend around them unnoticed, whatever cold and wet unpleasantness that it could bring entirely forgotten in the face of the strange yet familiar individual in front of them.

 **Unexpectedly, from where?**

Looking at him as if it were the very first time she'd seen him, Yuki then realised that in truth it _was_ the first time that she'd really seen him, by herself, with her own two eyes without any bionic technology aiding her in the process. Ever since she'd found out that he was still alive, she had been both anticipating and dreading their reunion, but not for one second had she contemplated the possibility that where fateful coincidence had brought them together once, it could do so again. It was almost as if the very forces of nature were trying to bring the two of them together and would not be defeated by any laws or social regulations that civilisation futilely tried to impose.

 **I feel**

 **Like I am dreaming**

Just then, another train rode into the station and was soon accompanied by a rush of people coming up the stairs and flooding the entire platform in a matter of seconds, pushing and pulling their way towards the opening train doors. Caught off guard by the force of the oncoming surge, Yuki was harshly pushed aside and nearly fell to the concrete floor of the platform before she was fortunately caught and contained inside the safe confines of a pair of strong, warm arms.

"Careful, or you could get hurt", Riki's deep, satin voice said reassuringly, his big hands gently rubbing her bony shoulders through her furcoat as if to ward off the cold as well as the impatient crowd of commuters.

 **Hold me close  
Tomorrow may be gone**

Although he was not at all what she'd been expecting, this man was undeniably Riki. She was unsure what it was that had in fact changed: Riki's physique or her own perception of him? Possibly it was a combination of both, as he had only been a boy the last time she'd seen him. She'd observed enough Furniture growing out of service to know that at some point all boys would become men, but definitely not all of them grew up to be quite as sturdy and muscled as the one across from her was, although his body had still retained that slim, feline quality that it'd always had. _Just look at how much more beautiful and stronger he has become, my little wild cat grown into a mighty panther._

 **This is a moment of belief  
This is a moment made of dreams**

In turn also staring at her as if she was the most remarkable creature he had ever seen, Riki was just as entranced by the girl in his arms as she appeared to be by him, although he couldn't for the life of him fathom why she'd be interested in a mere slumdog such as him. Could it be that she was merely fascinated because she'd never actually seen a real-life mongrel before?

Seeing her long, golden hair swaying in the wind and shimmering in the snow, Riki could not stop himself from reaching out to touch those silky locks. Fortunately the girl did not appear to be startled in the slightest by the touch, as a matter of fact she momentarily closed her eyes as if revelling in the sensation. Combing through the golden strands, Riki could not help but compare the sensation to that of Iason's hair, and reached the conclusion that this hair felt very different even if it looked the same. _Real, this hair feels real._

Not quite believing that her Riki was right here in front of her, touching her willingly, Yuki became frightened that perhaps it was all just a dream or that perhaps her senses were lying to her. But when she opened her eyes again, he was still there and there was another flash of recognition when she laid eyes on a small birth mark right beneath his right eye, and then a slight scar on his chin, which he'd already had the very first time she'd met him. _Jupiter be praised, it's really him, it's really my Riki!_

 **You found me here today  
On the coldest winter night**

In the moment it became nearly impossible to contain her excitement at the realisation, and before she knew what she was doing, Yuki found herself reaching out and touching her beloved mongrel's face and hair with impatient enthusiasm, for the first time not merely registering its structure but truly _feeling_ it against her own, organic skin. Perhaps this so-called punishment had been meant to happen, because it now enabled her to have something with the human across from her that she would have never been able to have if she'd still been the unfeeling, synthetic Elite Iason Mink. It was as if the universe had orchestrated all of the previous, horrible events just so that they could finally find themselves and each other in this moment.

 **This moment is our right**

* * *

 **Ending song:** Kamelot – On the Coldest Winter Night

* * *

To Be Continued ...


End file.
